Operation: FORGET
by Numbuh25-KND
Summary: 3 years after sector V were decommissioned, epidemic strikes the Kids Next Door. Operatives are turning against their own teams and no-one knows why. Today's Kids Next Door have only one chance; find Sector V and defeat the power of decommissioning. Will the original Sector V prove to themselves and to KND that they were never meant to be forgotten? My first FanFic, Canon pairings.
1. Prologue

**A/N: So this is my first attempt at a FanFiction, aaand.. hope you like it!**

**Basic plan of the story: One of those long, 30+ chapter decommissioning fics. That's the idea, anyway.**

**P.S. All other chapters will be way longer. About 10 pages. Enjoy!**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team reunion

Mission Description:

Agents in sectors across the world are turning against their own teams, seemingly betraying the Kids Next Door for no known reason. This is a big problem; a KND operative wouldn't go against their own without a cause, especially not on such a large scale. Only a team as great as Sector V could piece together, track down and take on this growing epidemic. Only those 5 operatives have the skill to find out just why things are deterierating at Kids Next Door Moonbase. The only problem? Sector V were decomissioned 3 years ago. But was that enough to break the best team in Kids Next Door history?

PROLOGE

No battle is worth fighing without something to fight for.

During my years in the kids Next Door, I was told this too many times. There are so many times when someone I love has placed a steady hand on my shoulder, looked me in the eye, and told me, with a catch in their throat, that war was empty without something to be avenged, or something to be protected.

Once for graduating the Cadets Next Door, to set me on the right path.

Once for becoming the leader of sector V, to help give me stregnth that I thought I didn't have.

Once when I broke from the anxiety and overload of Supreme Leadership, from the one I knew would always be there.

And once when I thought it was all at its end.

Those years were the best of my life. I felt so lucky to be alive whenever we had a victory, and any time I had a few spare minutes of my day, I would simply stop and take it all in.I'd smile happily and enjoy the moment. I knew that nothing would last forever, even the golden ages of our Sector V. Everyone has a 13th birthday, and everyone faces up to it in a different way. Some try to lock themselves away in the weak hope that the day won't find them. Others mask sadness with laughter and jokes, to convince themselves more than others that they're okay with the future, which no-one really is. But once the machine has done the dirty work, the pain is over; no more suffering. In many ways, an operative's decomissioning is worse for the operative's team than for themselves. Having to watch a loved friend and valued teammember walk out of the chamber not having a clue who you are or what they have acomplished over the too short span of childhood is torture, and fighting the urge to tell them is worse.

It was hard to believe that all of it could be taken away in a matter of minutes. It didn't seem possible. They were such full memories, vibrant and strong; They weren't just grey matter stored away in my head. They were too valuable. It just didn't ad up that all those missions, the victories and the effort to maintain the reputation me and my sector upheld so proudly, could be erased and never known again.

But then, I've seen so many

good soldiers, comrades and friends fall so far just as fast.

That was one other thing I was told in the KND, namely on that one forsaken day that any active operative will tell you is dreaded with fear and anxiety. Decomissioning day.

My thirteenth birthday.

'You won't ever truly forget this, Abigail,' he said, taking my hand and raising my chin to look him in the eye. My eyes were brimming with tears. 'Everything you have now,' He gestured to the arena full of kids wiping their eyes and looking on with that 'can't watch but have to' expression. 'Is locked away at the back of your mind, in a place that no machine can get to. The time capsule has been buried, Abby. The box is locked, now go find the key.'

By that time I was bawling, teardrops falling and staining my midnight-blue shirt. I said my final goodbyes to the team before being lead somberly over to the chamber by numbuh 86, who was also cracking, a catch in her thick Irish tone was clearly audible.

'Goodbye numbuh 5. You were one of the best agents the KND will ever see...Abby.'

The key...

The key to beating the technology used for decades without fail...

It seemed impossible...

But then, so was the fact that we had saved kidkind so many times I had lost count...

The key. That's what I needed...

The Key to my old life...

The key to reviving lifelong friendships lost...

The key to what wasn't an organisation, but my entire life.

The key to getting what I craved so desperately back.

The key to his heart, one identical to mine...

The key to...

My front door.

~(*)~

**A/N: So what did you think? Hope you liked it. If not, I'm just an idiot on a screen. Enjoy the rest of the chapters! I'm out!**

**Wally: That's it? _The key? _That's what you're leaving with?**

**Me: Wellll... maybe.. What do you care?**

**Wally: Well, I'm gonna be in this story, right?**

**Abby: But ya weren't in this chapter, fool!**

**Hoagie: She's got a point.**

**Wally: _Pfft. _Whatever.**

**Nigel: So, am I still in space in this fic?**

**Me: You'll have to find out.**

**Kuki: Aww! A secret? Tell me, tell me, tell me!**

**Me: My lips are sealed...**

**Wally: Ah, forget this crud! **Leaves****

**-Numbuh 25**


	2. Ch 1, Mistakes Part I

**A/N: Hey! Not much to say... so yeah, here we go! Enjoy chapter 2!**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team reunion

CHAPTER 1 – Mistakes I

Abby POV

I sorted through the contents of my cluttered schoolbag, opening cases, tossing out papers, ripping open zippers to find the keyring that granted entrance to my home.

Then it hit me.

"Darn it, girl!" I kicked myself mentally, face palming, as I remembered lending my keys to my sister the day before.

"You've used those things every day for the past 4 years! How is it possible to forget them!"

An idea popped into my head, and I looked up at the door that wasn't going anywhere any time soon. Mom wasn't going to be home until 5PM at least, and dad even later. my watch read 3:45. And it was cold outside. Looked like that was my only choice. I sighed, and zipped up my bag, slinging it over my shoulder and trudging off around the side of the house. Thank caramels I left the window open. Even if it was the second storey.

I climbed gingerly on top of the trash cans, eyeing off the gutter, a reluctant determination filling my chest. I wondered why I was making such a big deal out of sucha small affair. With a deep sigh to steady me, I bent my legs and hoisted myself up over the edge with a strange professionality and ease. Hopping lightly over the tiles that covered the roof, I reached my window and turned around with satisfaction and a proud smile. The view was amazing. I took in a deep breath and soaked up all the radiance of the pinkish sky. Tossing my bag in through my window, I stepped cautiously yet with a weird sense of routine. I don't remember ever being up here, but then...

I'd always found it weird how I could never remember anything before my 13th birthday. What had I done that made sneaking off for an early morning walk at 3am so natural? What had happened to me before junior high that made me love the commando feeling of games like paintall and lazer tag so much? I felt exhillerated every time I did something I wasn't supposed to without anyone else knowing. It even happened out on a dodgeball court at school. It was like a pre-programmed routine; dodge, duck, roll, aim, fire. It gave me such a satisfied feeling, just to have the upper hand; to get what I wanted in that way that makes the opposition reconsider their thoughts on you. It was strange, but the battlefeild called me, like I was an old friend.

I stood there, looking out at the clouds. There were none of the usual sunrays around the edges. In a similar way, there was no emerging explanation for the mysteries of my life, before _and_ after my thriteenth birthday.

Suddenly, I felt dizzy. I tried to stand up, to get back to the window, but I lost my balance and slid down until I was nearly on the gutter. My vision clouded and I saw stars.

~(*)~

"What're you doing, numbuh 5?" came a perky, light voice.

"Numbuh 5's going on a candy run. You comin'?" It was my voice but... younger.

"Nah. I'm gonna stay here and have a tea party with hopsy-mopsy and my Do-you-want-sugar-with-that rainbow monkey. Oh! Could you get some chocco-sprinke munchies for my party?"

"Sure, numbuh 3"

A small 10-year-old girl walked down a flight of rickety wooden stairs, eyes hidden under a red cap that looked like mine except less worn. The next picture I saw was of a large open room, with a huge TV screen and two young boys playing video games.

"Hey guys, numbuh 5's doing a candy run, any you wanna come with?" The title screen flashed to "P2 WINS!" One boy cheered while the other groaned.

"Why is it so 'ard ta beat you!?"

"Coz' I'm the master!" The other one announced, raising a fist to the sky. "And, Abby, wait up, I'll come with you!" The chubby boy got up and jogged over to me.

"'Kay then, Hoags, let's go!" I felt happy. Something had just gone my way.

~(*)~

My name is Abigail Lincoln.

I am an ordinary 16 year old girl.

I attend high school like any other normal teen.

I have friends and enemies like any other teen.

I try to keep my grades up, like any other teen.

But normal people don't have the dreams.

Normal teens don't see and hear the voices and images in their minds.

And normal teens don't feel so strange around people that they thought they'd never met before. Those few people... some more than others, some not at all, four people stronger than most, and one boy more than any.

Why do I feel like someone made a mistake?

Why do I feel like I should know something I don't?

And _why_ is it that I feel so connected to these people?

I feel so wrong...

They feel so right...

They made a mistake, I know. But who are '_they?'..._

I dont know, but something deep inside me, something that's been dormant for far too long, tells me I'm going to find out soon...

I really hope I'm right..

~(*)~

Hoagie POV

"So, you can get those spotlight slides in for me by next week?" I asked through the phone.

"Sure, Hoags. They'll be at your place Tuesday at he latest."

That was Mr. Matthews, the man who owned the hobby shop Hoagie worked at. He also supplied AV equipment to the school for the various things they were needed for. Right now, I needed blue and yellow spotlight slides for the school musical, Beauty and the Beast.

As head of the AV department, I am looked to for all their tech. needs. I'm not classed as a nerd, but I'm definitely not a jock. Everyone knows me, and unlike some other AV club members, I'm not bullied or isolated, because obviously, if you tick me off, I can make bad things happen to you an your clique.

'Coz I have connections.

"Thanks, Mr. Matthews, I appreciate it." I disconnected the call and tucked my phone into my back pocket. I'd kinda tricked-out my phone, adding a high-quality, 10 megapixel camera and voice recognition software, upgrading the internet system to a faster, more reliable carrier. I'm not even sure if that's legal, but it sure makes things more convenient.

I strolled out of school and into the parking lot, swinging my keys around my finger casually. I reached my car; an old faded blue pickup truck, and slotted the keys in and turned them, smiling satisfiedly at the mechanical '_click.' _I had gotten the truck for my 16th birthday 3 weeks ago. It wasn't new at all, and frankly a little run down, but my mom knew that was how I liked them; rusty and in need of a workshop. That was exactly what I did. I upgraded the engine and tricked out the inside, fighting the strange urge to gather junk from around the house and turn it into a hover car. What was up with that, anyway? I told my mom about it over dinner, as a sort of joke, thinking that it would be funny, but she didn't take it that way.

"Why, Hoagie! Don't you remember? You used to do that sort of thing all the time with your little friends! Oh, I recall you spending hours up in your little treehouse, tinkering away with your tools and whatever else you could find around the place!" She ranted, making no sense to me whatsoever.

"Uh, mom, what are you talking about? I'm pretty sure that wasn't me," I said, though, come to think of it, I really wasn't sure. I really couldn't remember anything before middle school. It was strange...

"Don't you remember?" mom asked, frowning. "You used to play with your little friends... oh let's see now, there was little Abby, and that british boy Nigel and the Beatles' son, Wally... Oh! And Kuki Sanban. Oh, she was always so nice!" Those names... I knew those names! Wallaby "Wally" Beatles, the captain of the football team, who, oddly, didn't seem to have much interest for the game at all. Kuki Sanban, the head of the drama department who everyone liked (and who liked everyone), and... Nigel Uno, the new English transfer student... Who was bald.

For some reason.

But he just moved here, I couln't possibly have known him before the start of this year!

And... and Abby Lincoln.

Abby Lincoln, journalist for the school blog. Abby Lincoln, the only one who could pull off the grades she does without being classed as a nerd. Abby Lincoln, with those deep brown eyes and in-control smile. She hung out with Kuki, and Nigel sometimes. They- I didn't know them as kids... did I? I didn't think so, but then if I couldn't remember... it was possible, wasn't it?

Suddenly, I didn't feel so good.

"Uhm, mom? I'm feeling kinda sick," I blurted. "I think I'm gonna go to bed early." Mom gave me a worried look.

"Well, okay then, Hoagie. Hope you feel better in the morning. Goodnight!"

"Goonight," I murmered, heading up the stairs to my room.

Another bout of sickness hit me halfway up the staircase. A quickened my pace and headed into the bathroom to splash water on my face. When the pulsing knot in my stomach died down, I grabbed a glass of water from the sink and retreated to my star-covered sheets.

After around 5 minutes, I began to drift off. But in the midst of my half-asleep half-awake phase, I saw something. Oddly familiar pictures wound through my head of rockets, flying school buses, wooden gun-like things and other seemingly impossible devices. I tried to convince myself it was a dream, but they felt too much like memories, solid memories that I actually possesed... but I didn't. I had no idea what those things were. Something else floated into my mind, an parked it directly in the middle of my view. A treehouse beyond epic proportions. A room, a large, open room... bluprints... experiments... flying...

"_What is going on?"_ I asked out loud. All the images swirled into one big cloud in my mind, combining and creating new pictures, places, faces that seemed so, _so_ familiar. As I drifted off that night, one last thing came to surface. I murmured, seconds before my eyes fell shut;

"_I don't think it worked." _

~(*)~

Kuki POV

I left the schoolgrounds in early evening, enjoying the radiant blanket the sunset threw. I had stayed back late to help paint the sets for the school play. It was fun, and some of the boys there had even started a paint fight. I would have joined in too, if Ms. Callanan hadn't chosen to walk through the art room at that very moment.

I walked happily down the sidewalk, smiling slightly.

I'm not really that special, but I like my life. I am head of the drama department, and even though that means putting in a lot of after-school hours, I loved every moment of it. Even Abby sometimes stayed back to help out, when she doesn't have a deadline for the school blog to meet. I stopped in the middle of the pathway, frowning slightly in thought. Was this the way home? I didn't usually walk home, but because it was such a nice evening, I had decided to make the most of the atmosphere and had called to tell my mom I'd be home a little late.

I couldn't tell which way lead to my house. I checked my watch. 6:00pm. Dinner was usually at 6:30, and mom liked me to be on time.

There was a rustling in the bushes, and I turned around quickly to find a little kid standing there, looking up at me defiantly, pointing some gadget thing at me like I was the enemy.

"Uhm, hi?" I said giving a small smile. "Can I... help you?"

"Can it, _teen!_" the little blonde boy retorted in a thick accent that sounded familiar, spitting out the word 'teen' like it was an insult. I tilted my head and frowned slightly in confusion.

"Uh, wh-"

"Shut it! I'll ask the questions around here!"

"That wasn't a question. But here's one; do you know how to get to 12 Sycamore street from here?" The boy was clad in a white long-sleeved shirt with an orange Tee on top and jeans stained at the knees from some large... game? He stared up at me, as if deciding whether or not I should be considered a threat.

"Look, ya cruddy teenager, I d-" he was cut off by a loud beeping from his back pocket. Tensing suddenly, he reached into his pocket, retreiving some gadget that looked like an old house phone with a screen and a can-opener knob. Pressing a large red button, he turned his back on me and began speaking into a hole on the end of the- whatever it was.

"Numbuh 121, sir! We 'aven't found anything yet, but somethin's come up.'

Silence, as the person on the other end of the receiver spoke.

There's a teenager inside the perimiter of tha sheild. Requesting backup, sir!"

Another pause. I listened hard, and could just make out the faint humming of the person the boy was talking to.

"Okay, thanks numbuh 121. Over and out," he finished, tucking the device safely back into his pocket.

"Ya plans ain't gonna work, teen! Ah've got the rest of ma sector on the case, and we'll kick your sorry butt outta here before you can say '_Like, totallyyyy!"_

I was a little insulted by that comment. Completely and utterly confused, but insulted.

"Hang on a second..." I said, the familiar accent fitting itself into my mind as I realised where I'd heard it.

"Are you Wally Beatle's brother?"

He looked up, a shadow casting over his golden-blonde fringeand hiding his eyes from view.

"Ya _know_ my brotha?"

"Well, yeah, everyone knows him! He's the captain of the football team."

He 'hmph'ed at me.

Before I could say anything else, two other kids sprung from the bushes, with more strange weapons made from discarded houseold items.

"Joey, what's the situation?" one girl said.

"This girl just showed up and started asking questions. She acts like she doesn't know anything but Ah'm not so sure. And Ah'm not Joey. Ah'm numbuh 404!" He shot back. I just stood there, while the other kid scanned over me with another little... thing of their's.

"Look, I just wanna get home. Where is Sycamore street?"

"She's clean. Let's move out guys!" The boy with the scanner said, beginning to run off down the road. The others followed. The little girl looked up at me then said;

"Your house is that way," pointing in the opposite direction before sprinting off to join her friends.

That was just strange. But all the while, I was left with such a strange mixture of sadness and deja vu...

**A/N: * shrug* uh, I dunno. You tell me. Please R&R if you want, tips and anything else is welcome. BYE!**

**-Numbuh 25**


	3. Ch 2, Mistakes Part II

A/N: Hey! chapter 3... not that anyone out there is reading. If you are, thank you and please don't take out your anger on the computer screen when you finish reading the injustice I do the KND name. I suck. Read on.

CHAPTER 2- Mistakes II

Wally POV

"Ay, Wally! Don't forget; training Thursday, 'kay?" Ace Kidd, one of the quarterbacks for the school football team called from aross the field.

"Ah'm team captain, Ace, Ah think Ah should know when ma team trains!" Me and Ace had a love-hate relationship. Sometimes he was fun to hang out with, and he always got a decent job done, but other times... I wanted to beat the crud outta him. It didn't make things any better that we both liked the same girl. The only difference was that he was a _lot_ more open about it than I would ever be. I physically tensed every time he went over there, acting all smooth and cool with his gelled-up hair and black shades. But she turned him down over and over again. It wasn't as if she had any shortage of boys asking her out, but it brought me more than just a little bit of happiness every time he was broken, and had to face the long walk back to the "jock" table. Okay, so maybe it was more hate than love.

I pulled up my old Holden Ute in the driveway of my house, turning down the stereo and heaving my schoolbag out of the back. That car is one of my most prized possesions. It was like a little bit of home; every time I heard the engine splutter into life it reminded me of Aus. I entered through the door, hearing mum in the kitchen cooking something that smelled good.

"Hello, Wally dear!" She greeted. "How was practice?"

"It was foine. This football'll nevah be as good as back home though." According to me, the rugby back in Australia was the best sport that was ever played.

"Oh, I know dear. But there aren't any clubs around here... or anywhere for that matter. I'm afraid this is the best we can do," she sighed.

I knew that mum always tried to make it easy to fit in in the US, but it would never be home. Lately it had been worse than usual, and I can't understand why. I couldn't remember ever being homesick when I was younger, but then again, I couldn't really remember anything from when I was young. Everything before the my thirteenth birthday is just a big black blob, like a painting smudged beyond repair.

"Wally, honey, sit down a minute." I was little taken aback by that. My mum was never usually this serious. I took a seat at the kitchen counter.

"Yeah, mum?" I asked, a little worried about what was coming next.

"We know you've been feeling a little... homesick lately. So, we've arranged for a little holiday this winter break."

I looked over to her. Her face was a mixture of anticipation, excitement and trying to hide all of the above.

"You mean- we're-" I stuttered, trying to grab onto one thought at a time.

"Yes Wally. We're going back to Australia." I was extatic.

"Seriously? Ah, mum you're tha best! Ah can't wait!" Mum just chuckled and shook her head slightly at my childish outburst.

"Well then it's going ta be a long 3 months for you, Wallaby," she smiled. I didn't care. It didn't matter how long I had to wait, it just mattered that I was going.

"Thank you _so_ much, mum! 'Ave ya told Joey yet?"

"No, Ah was just going now. Do you wanna tell 'im?"

I thought for a moment. Me and my little brother didn't always get along that well, but we did have our moments. But, I wasn't sure how he would feel about the trip. He was only just born when we moved and he didn't really know the place from anything but pictures. I said I would anyway, and walked off down the hall to his room.

"Hey, Joe, how's it goin'?" I greeted from the doorframe.

" Ah, hey, uh. What da ya want?" He replied quickly. He looked a little caught off guard, and a little guilty, his hands under the covers like he'd hidden something there. He seemed to be trying to work whatever it was without looking at it. It was probably one of those strange contraptions he used with his friends in that secret agent game they were always playing. I smirked.

"'Ay, 'ay, don't get crabby! Ah just came up ta talk to ya," I shot back in a mock-defensive tone.

"Well, okay, what's up then?" He said, now looking a little more curious. I sat down on the bed.

"Joey, do ya like coming from Australia?" I wasn't sure how to bring up the subject, so I guess I was playing it by ear.

"Uh, Ah dunno. Ah don't really think about it much."

"Do you wanna foind out?"

"...Ah guess."

"What 'ave ya got planned ova winter break?" I asked back, wondering if this was going to develop into the actual topic any time soon.

"Not much. Just hangin' with ma friends, really."

"Well, clear ya schedule, mate. We're goin' back home."

There. It was out there. Now how would he react?

"Cool! But won't it be cold there?" he queried, looking genuinely excited but a little worried. I laughed.

"Nah, mate, it's summa ova there when it's winta here."

"Oh. Really?"

"Yeah." I said with a chuckle."So you're not mad about going?"

"No! It sounds like fun! And you and dad are always watching footy on sattelite. Maybe we'll actualy be able ta go to a game!" He cheered, a little spark appearing in his eye. I couldn't help but smile down at him and ruffle his hair.

"Ha, maybe. Okay, squirt. Ah'll seeya then."

"Bye!" I had a strange feeling that he was talking to someone after I'd left.

I made my way up to my room, thinking about how me and my bro _could_ get along really well sometimes. There were some things that we just couldn't stand about each other, but then, that was just one of the catches that came along with the bond of brotherhood. I turned into my room and flopped down on my bed, only to be called straight back down for dinner. After I was finished, I returned and let myself fall back onto the covers. Before long I was asleep.

**-Dream-**

"Hi Wally!" Called a small, dark-haired girl, wearing a green sweater that was at least 6 sizes to big.

"'Ay, Kooks. What's up?" greeted a short, 10-year-old boy that looked sightly like Joey.

"We're watching Rainbow monkey happy funtime hour! Come on, you can still catch the end!" Came the overly cheery voice.

The boy gagged.

"No-ho-ho way!" He scoffed, waving his arms back and forth to add effect. "There is no way I am watching rainbow dorkies for a whole _hour!_"

"Well, you _did_ miss most of it 'coz you were out at your grandparents house, but don't worry! There's still ten minutes left!" The young asian girl was weilding a bright blue monkey with a rainbow halo above its head.

"Yeah!" The boy started. "ten minutes to get outta here!"

The girl was visibly saddened, and lowered the monkey to the couch.

"But Wally..." she whined, putting on the puppy dog eyes. The boy tensed. _Not gonna fall for it this time, mate, _he told himself. _Be tough._

"Pleeeeease?" Came a pleading voice that awoke Wally from his pep talk of sorts. If this was a game, Wally wasn't winning. He cursed himself and balled his fist as he, like always, cracked.

"Oh Oh-_kay,_" He relented, taking a seat on the couch, mumbling to himself.

"Next time I won't give in..."

**-End Dream-**

Nigel POV

I loaded onto the bus after school, like any other student who wasn't lucky enough to have a car. I had been saving, and I was almost there. Just a couple more weeks of work...

I sort of liked being the new kid in town. It was like an experiment. I liked seeing the way the different cliques responded to my presence. Some, like the "skaters" or the "preps" ignored me altogether, obliviously by the skaters and very pointedly by the preps. I laughed at the fact they thought they could hurt me or bring me down by pretending I didn't exist. The math geeks were always trying to convince me to join the mathletes, and the music department analysed me for an instrument case every morning when I entered school. But I was more into things like book club, and the school's lazer tag team sounded like fun. I'd been talking to Abby, the team captain who also sometimes did articles on the school blog, when there was space to fill. But she, and Kuki, a very... optimistic girl who hung out with her, seemed to spark some sort of strange emotion. I couldn't know them, could I? My parents told me that I had lived in America before we moved back to England, but I couldn't remember anything before that day I woke up, in a bed in London, somewhere between my thirteenth and fourteenth birthdays. Apparently I had been studying on a scholarship at a boarding school in Canada, when I fell and broke my leg badly after falling down a flight of stairs, and was sent home until it had gotten better. I didn't recall a boarding school, or any fall, but once I got home, I just couldn't imagine leaving... again? And dad had managed to get a job in our old suburb, and though I couldn't convince him that I didn't remember anyone from there, here I am.

There were a few people who gave off the same feeling of nostalgia as Abby and Kuki. Hoagie Gilligan, the AV club president who could fix anything, according to Kuki an Abby. Wally Beatles, the captain of the football team, who was the toughest player the team had known, but didn't seem to actually _like_ playing the game. Patton Drilovsky also raised some deja vu. He was on the football team with Wally, and took it upon himself to train the junior team. There was Fanny Fulbright, a testy member of the girl's volleyball team, and Rachel McKenzie, school captian. Everyone knew her, and she knew everyone. She was attractive, with blonde hair skimming her shoulders, deep hazel eyes and lightly freckled face. She wore an orange and black tiger striped T-shirt , dropped at one shoulder, with a green tank top underneath, a pair of khaki shorts and black high-tops. She was nice; never took things too seriously yet never lashed out or yelled. Something about her made me think she was just a born leader. I wondered weather she'd had any experience at it, just for the fact she knew just how to keep an audience of over six hundred high school students listening and interested. I admired her for that. It wasn't easy to do; almost as difficult as managing a school full of kids with no teachers. Not that I disliked kids, unlike some other teens I had seen.

I got off at my stop, and walked down the street to my house, returning to the hazy subject of my childhood. My father was disappointed when we'd moved back here, down-hearted that we couldn't buy back our old house. To tell the truth, I was a little releived, for two reasons. I mean, how strange would it be to live in a house you had supposedly been raised in, but had no recollection of? and how was I supposed to tell dad that I had no idea how this place was set out, where everything was, and how to get around the neighbourhood, which I have now "re-learned." I pondered on the subject quite a lot, especially after moving back here, thinking up stories and conjuring explanations as to why my mind might have actually _wanted_ me to rid my mind of these things. My mum said I'd never been bullied, and that I really had a wide range of friends who I was very close with. I never bothered to ask who these "friends" were; they wouldn't ring any bells, I felt sure. And anyway, it would just be strange to go up to any old person in the schoolgrounds and say; "Hey! We were best friends as kids, until I moved, broke my leg, moved again, twice, and was only just informed out I knew you at all!" What would happen from there, I wonder? A total smackdown? A call to the local mental hospital saying that 'I think one of your patients has wandered off'? An attitude-filled; "Stay away from me, freak!"? Or, the much less likely, but still possible in the way that it's possible that I have actually been on a prank show for the past 3 years of my life; 'Oh, sure! Just come sit with us, we've got a lot of catching up to do! Hey, do you remember that time...' followed by the rush of returning memories and the reassurance that I was, in fact, sane. Yeah, no way was I going to try to reunite with any of the people that I don't know but apparently grew up with. I was happy trying to fit in with Abby and Kuki, even if they did make me feel strange sometimes. Rachel and Fanny hung out with them sometimes, and we'd talk about real things, not like the cheerleaders who gossiped and gasped aand giggled and went behind backs. These people talked about things like music, which I liked, and real issues that weren't made up and texted. It was nice, and I didn't mind being the only boy there. But then, the _familiar_ feeling was stronger around them. It was like I was being restrained, and no matter what I did, I couldn't break the chains. But the thing is, I don't know what's being restrained. A thought, a feeling, a memory? _Oh, well,_ I thought, _just try to ignore it and fit in like a normal person._ Because I was pretty sure I wasn't a normal person. Trying to ignore the feeling that I was _more_ than a humble 10th grade student, I continued walking towards home. Walking, walking... there used to be an easier way to get home, right? Like a jet or something... I can have a strange imagination sometimes.

A/N: Well... not much. If you didn't know this, I am Australian, so I'm making Wally a hard core Aussie! I love watching rugby, even though some people (like my uncle, the captain of Manly!) get really hurt while playing it. That 's why I think that AFL players here in Melbourne are way overcredited compared to the NRL.

...sorry, I feel really passionate about this subject. Okay, if you've read this reveiw I tell you, REVEIW! Numbuh 25 is out.

Peace! (Y)


	4. Ch 3, Problems

A/N: Hey! Back again for chapter 3! This may be the last update for a while, 'cause homework and school are really picking up pace now! (Damn the teachers. Sometimes, I swear they're evil. You know what I mean?) I have up to the start of chapter 6 written, but it's just a matter of when I have time to edit and upload. Ok, so I'll try (emphasis on _try_) to update every week, maybe saturday/sunday. But I'm not garaunteeing anything. Moving on... enjoy chapter 3!

CHAPTER 3 – Problems

Joey POV

I sat in my room, laying back on my bed, trying to relax. But there was too much going on right now, and relaxation seemed a world away. School, mission, homework, sleep. That's how my life seemed to be, though not always in that order. I knew I was better off than some other operatives, but still, that didn't mean I wasn't being worked at all. I sighed, in the hope that the tense, tight feeling in my chest would be persuaded to move. It didn't. I wondered about the 12-year-old operatives, up in junior high. Were they more over worked than me? Would I feel worse than this once _I _reached 7th grade? My communicator rang. I picked it up, shooting a quick 'Talk to me' down the other end of the line.

"Hey numnuh 404, it's Jake." My teammate was Jake Ronalds, the 2x4 tech officer for our sector. He was always thinking of new ideas, and the one I'd suggested to him about the forcefeild that blocked anyone over the age of thirteen from entering sent him into a designing frenzy. I asked him why he was calling, since we'd only seen each other a little over 2 hours ago.

"It's about the sheild."

After a legnthy conversation about the anti-teen

barrier he was working on, I summed up the words he'd been avoiding.

"So what ya sayin' is that the barrier won't work?" I asked through the speaker, in slight dismay.

"'Fraid so, numbuh 404. We were just thinking too big." Came the saddened reply of my teammate.

"Unpossible numbuh 202. If we can think it, we can build it. We're the kids next door, for cryin' out loud! We built a treehouse on the _moon_ before the adults could even think it up!"

"...I guesss you're right. I-I'll see what I can do, maybe pull a few strings on moonbase, see if I can get some more resources. I'll get back to you on that." He sounded as though he was only saying that to get me off his back, but I took the bait anyway. Him and me both were just too tired to keep on the subject.

"Thanks, numbuh 202, that'd be awesome." There was a short silence from the other end. I could hear Jake's younger brother into backround yelling excitedly, as three-year-olds do. I wondered if I should wrap up the call.

"Now, my turn to ask some questions." Looked like he was starting things up again. I knew what this was about, and it could take a while to explain.

It was hard for or sector to keep up a good reputation in the Kids Next Door, given those who had come before us. Jake cut in on my thoughts before I could drift any further into dreamland.

"How's the research on the first sector V going? Got any leads on its members yet?"

I'd been reading up on the members of the original sector V, who most agree were 5 of the best operatives in KND history, trying to find the identities of some of its members, but so far they remained shrouded in mystery.

"Not so hot, numbuh 202. Ah've bin lookin' in all tha right places, accordin' to numbuh 950. Ya know, the archivist guy up in sector H, but Ah can't foind _anythin'_ on them!" My annoyance was giving a harsh edge to my voice. I wasn't having any luck, no matter how hard I tried, and it was starting to get to me. What was I doing wrong? Usually, to find the names of past operatives, all you had to do was their codename and sector into any KND soopa computer and you'd have a detailed analysis right in front of you! But I'd been to the archives, the filing system for our region (which was all the way across the state, by the way) and to even to moonbase to look through the Motherboard's listing of every KND operative ever recorded! They even had numbuh 19th century on that thing! And he was actually _from_ the 19th century! But numbuhs 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 are only given rundowns on their missions and active years. The computer wouldn't even give me a first name to go on. So, I'd booked an appointment with numbuh 263, the soopreme leader, to talk to him about it. I just hoped he could tell me something. I relayed all this back to numbuh 202, and he wished me good luck.

"Thanks. I'm gonna need it." I replied.

We were just beginning to discuss the latest episode of the yipper cartoons when my brother appeared at my door... literally.

"Ay, Joe. How's it goin'?"

I was startled, and almost yelled out as he made his presence known. I scrambled to hide the communicator under the covers, all the while trying to send a message to Jake on the keyboard, straining my mind to remember where the buttons were. I gave up after a while, and Wally started talking. From the way he acted, and the nervous and unprepared tone to his voice, I could tell he was nervous about the subject. That got me interested; my older brother _never_ let nerves get to him.

When he told me we were going back to Australia for the winter break, I was really excited, which I think relieved him a lot. I couldn't remember being there, because I was literally days old when we moved, but I thought somehow it might stregnthen the bond between me, Wally, and maybe even my dad. Wally and my father were always watching Rugby Legue on TV. We'd even gotten sattelite just so they could get the channel that plays it. I stayed up and watched with them one time, but I could tell they were a little annoyed by me asking about the rules all the time. So, that night, I went and used the L.U.N.C.H.B.O.C.K.S. I keep under my bed, and hid under the covers reading up on the game. I read the rules over and over until I knew them off by heart. Now I just had to wait for a time to show them that I was proud of my roots. And it would be pretty awesome to actually _see_ a game in Aus.

After Wally had left, I immediately threw off the covers and picked up the communicator again.

"Sorry 'bout that, Jake. My brotha turned up at my door."

"No probs. What'd he say?"

"We're goin' back to Australia for winta break." There was a pause.

"That's cool, Joey, but... won't you be out of touch?" He seemed a little disappointed.

I knew what he meant. What if my team needed me while I was away? Sometimes, and only in extremly rare situations like these, I wished KND wasn't such a _huge_ part of my life. 99.999999% of the time I loved it, and never wanted it to end, but there came moments when you thought about what it would be like to be one of the kids the KND fought for, and not the one fighting. To be carefree and not have to worry about when the next team meeting was, or when your S.C.A.M.P.E.R. was due for a service.

"Ah'm sure Ah'll be able ta contact ya," I lied. I had no idea whether our technology ranged that far, or if I'd even be able to get to a transmitter. "Ah'll find a way to keep ya up ta date, and for you ta do tha same. And besides, It's a holiday; Ah'm meant ta be gettin' away from work." I had hung up the walkie-talkie-like communicator and layed back on my bed, thinking about how fun it would be, meeting family that I never knew I had, bodyboarding at the beach, enoying the heat. I'd heard things were different in Australia, but my brother would _never_ let me believe the way that Aussies were played out on TV was the way we actually were back home. That was when the sooper-importanic-alarm-amajig went off, making me jump and shocking me out of my pleasant thoughts. I cursed, though the words I used had no real impact (I _was_ just a kid, no matter how far KND allowed me to go) and picked up the receiver.

"Whot's happening?" I asked dutifully. I was informed by a frazzled numbuh 556 that there was a triple important, super urgent meeting on moonbase, and that me, and my sector, had to leave ASAP. I had to think quikly.

"Uh mum? I'm not feeling so great. Ah think Ah'll just have somethin' ta eat later," I called, hoping desperatly it would be enough of an excuse.

"Oh, okay, Joey. Do ya want me to come up and check on ya, honey?"

"No! I mean, no mum, that's alright. Ah'm just gonna... get some rest," I replied far too quickly. Luckily, she bought it, and told me to feel better. I jumped out the window into the backyard, and hit the ground running. It was a short but nice trip to our treehouse, and the journey there was often the best part of my day. I breathed in the fresh evening air, before pulling up outside the neglected backyard that our base stood in.

Before long I was inside, in the aircraft hanger, my friends already starting to arrive.

"Hey, numbuh 404. You got the message?" asked Fern, numbuh 303.

"Yup. Whot do ya think is goin' on at moonbase?" I responded, concerned about the wellbeing of the organisation. Before long, the whole sector had arrived, managing to sneak off in one way or another. We loaded onto the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. and took off, efficient as always.

About halfway to moonbase, the 'incoming transmission' alert went off.

"Numbuh 505, get that up on screen for me," directed numbuh 121.

"Roger that," came the reply. In a few seconds a full-screen shot of numbuh 263 appeared on the moniter.

We all saluted to him.

"At ease, sector V," he said. "I want a full report on your movements for the day." Numbuh 505 took the reigns.

"Well, we were out trying to set a perimiter for a protective barrier for the treehouse. Joey ran into a teen who claimed she was lost. We kept out guard up, but Jake scanned her with a L.I.A.R. and it turns ot she was telling the truth. So, overall a pretty slow day," she explained. "What's happening up on moonbase?"

"It's too complicated and important to explain now. I'll tell everyone at the meeting, when we can have the sooper-stregnth sheild on us," was the ominous response.

"Okay then, sir. We'll see you there," I replied, trying to mask the concern in my voice with a dutiful overlay.

"Yeah. Okay, numbuh 263 out." And with a fizzle of static, the screen flashed to black, leaving us to focus on the field of stars outside the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.'s windsheild again.

**Abby POV**

I sighed heavily and let my head drop back on my bedhead to look at the ceiling. It wasn't interesting in the least, but when you're this bored, anything, and I mean anything else seems like a better idea.

I was in my room, on my laptop, trying to sift slowly through the mountain of homework I had been assigned. After working solidly for a good hour, I finally snapped. Minimising the science essay I was almost done with, I eagerly let go of my clouded and already full mind and brought up the Instant Messaging page on my browser. I signed in and assesed the conversation, scrolling through the posts and the people and topics that had appeared this time. As usual, the exchanges had covered most topics; school, friends, homework, parents, and the occasional burst of media and news, usually leading into the inevitable and consuming gossip.

Kuki was on, as well as Rachel, Fanny, Wally and Hoagie. I recognised all of their usernames in a second; Rainbowz_rock for Kuki, SooperGirl for Rachel, GirlzRuleDaWorld was (predictably) Fanny's, and Wally's was DontMessWivMe. but it was Hoagie's screen name was the one that made me laugh. FlyBoy. It _so_ fitted him, and on so many levels as well.

_Redhat16: Hey guys! what's going on?_

_Rainbowz_rock: Hi abby, we were talkin about winter break. wally's going away!_

I smirked. Of course that was the first thing she would say to me. It may not have been apparent to her, but she wasn't exactly discreet about her crush on the captain of the football team.

_DontMessWivMe: Yea. just for winter break tho. I'll be back after christmas. I'm goin bak to Oz!_

_Redhat16: Awesum! Ur excited, I can tell! _: )

_DontMessWivMe: Ha, yea. gotta go now. Seeya at skool. 3 months and counting! _:D

I could practically see the anticipation in his message. He must have been _really_ happy about this, because Wally doesn't usually express that much emotion, and he _never_ uses emoticons.

_SooperGirl: So, Abby. U free this weekend?_

_Redhat16: Yea, I think. Y?_

_Soopergirl: There's a lazer tag tournament down the arcade. With U three on our team, we could beat anyone with our hands behind out backs and our eyes closed! _; ) _so, u in?_

_Redhat16: Yea, but who do u mean three?_

_SooperGirl: U, Kuki and Hoagie! You guys practically OWN the game!_

_GirlzRuleDaWorld: What? You said it'd be a GIRLS ONLY team!_

_SooperGirl: You wouldn't have agreed if I hadn't, right?_

_GirlzRuleDaWorld: Touche... but I don't think I can work with a stoopid boy. U better not team us up!_

_FlyBoy: ...I'm still here U know_

_Rainbowz_rock: don't take it personally. It's just Fanny. She has a ...thing about boys._

_FlyBoy: Riiiight. Because that makes total and utter sense. Really._

The sarcasm made me smile, a little fond smile like you would give to an old friend, which was strange since I'd only started hanging out with Hoagie a little over a year ago.

_SooperGirl: So, U in or not? Signups R due in 2 days!_

I thought about it, confused at how I'd suddenly felt when Hoagie's name was mentioned. It was an inwardly happy feeling, like a small glowing light in my chest.

_Redhat16: I'll be there._

I logged off, and went back to my homework, sighing at the still large pile I had to go. If I was going to get good marks at the end of the year, I should probably finish this. But what about right now?

Why should I let the present go in the hope of a better future?

Is a high-paying job, a good reputation or a higher grade really worth wasting away my youth trapped in a bedroom drowning in due dates and deadlines? Sometimes I thought it was; a good job or a college scholarship after high school meant a secure and positive future. But most of the time, my thoughts were based around one question;

What about the future we thought about as kids?

What about the future that is now?

A/N: well, whadaya think? A little more on Joey and the present sector V in this chapter, and they will become a reasonably big part later in the Fic (I say reasonably because I haven't really figure out the details of the later parts of this story) Well, anyways, tell me if you like the end bit of Abby's bit. It just came to me while I was sitting here on my laptop, so I typed it as it came! ; ) I dunno if it was worth it, so you tell me! Kay, bay now!

-Numbuh 25


	5. Ch 4, Epidemic

**A/N: Hey again! Sorry I'm a few days late, there's been a significant increase in homework, tests, band, ballet (pointe work _hurts_) and movies that I have been told I HAVE to see. I have conquered 3 of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, and THEY RULE! So yeah, I hope you like chapter 5. Mostly an informational chap, completely from Joey's sector's POV. Okay, read on!**

Now Loading...

Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

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Recovery

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Team reunion

CHAPTER 4 – Epidemic

I sat uncomfortably in my seat, and not just because it was in need of a serious re-stuffing. Numbuh 263 had seemed so agitated when we had received that video transmission in the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. It was like he thought something was going to attack at any moment, but whatever it was, it was dragging out the process. It set me on edge to see our usually calm and collected leader so timid. I now sat in an old cushioned, seat in the moonbase global meeting room, a stadium filled with millions of thrown together office charis, plastic kiddy chairs, padded metal stools and classroom seats with curved backs. fidgeting and listening to my teammates talk in concern about whatever it was that was so important it had to be announced to the entire KND in the safety of the soundproof arena.

"Who do you think has got numbuh 263 so worked up?" numbuh 303 asked, her voice soft and meak. We were all concerned, and were edgily awaiting answers to the growing number of questions.

"Well, it can't be a villain we know, or it wouldn't have gotten him so worried," numbuh 505's wit never failed to give us an advance in investigation, and just because the target was our leader, doesn't mean she didn't throw her entire mind into it. After a few minutes, and more talking and thinking and sharing ideas about who or what could be so important that an emergancy meeting had to be called, most of which were found to be a dead end, numbuh 8,860 stepped up on stage, and gradually, the rest of the stadium fell silent.

"Greetings fellow Kids Next Door. As you have probably heard, things are happening within the KND, and though we tried to handle the matter without making it public, the problem is getting out of hand. We have been forced to tell the entire Kids Next Door, so that we may have more brains and eyes on the case. Numbuh 263, please take over." As he walked steadily off the raised platform, you could still hear his shaky sigh, picked up by the all-inclusive magnification of the microphone. That only pushed us further to the edge of our seats.

We saluted again as Robert took the stage, nodding solemnly to numbuh 8,860. He looked slightly more secure than on the video screen in the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. but not fully himself, not content or satisfied or proud, not like if this had been graduation of a class of Cadets. But he still had it in him to shout out our battle cry, in a surprisingly strong tone.

"Kids Next Door RULES!" He yelled, raising his fist to the sky. Everyone in the stadium copied. This was one of the times I felt lucky to be a Kid Next Door, and more united than ever with my fellow operatives. Millions of kids, all together under one roof, from across the globe, shouting the same battle cry, on the _moon_, where no adult has ever tried to make a settlement. Well, successfully tried to make a settlement anyway.

"Fellow Kids Next door operatives, throughout the past weeks we have been experiencing something that has never been recorded in the history of our organisation. Up until now, this situation has been kept under lock and key from everyone except myself, and a few other operatives, scientists, field agents and 2/4 technology officers who have been working tirelessly to try and fix, even just explain the problem."

The tone of his voice told me and everyone watching that this was no ordinary problem. This was a threat to the entire KND. The entire stadium watching on with worried eyes, their gazes causing Robert to take a big, heaving breath to steady himself. There was none of the usual whispered chatter amongst the kids towards the back. The coughs and heavy breathing that were ever-present in past meetings had diminished under the silence. All that remained was the ticking of the massive universal clock that hung at least fourty feet above the centre podium, and the faint crackling from the microphone.

"Operatives have begun to turn on their own teams," he finally surrendered to the fact that this was too big a problem to keep secret any more. "At first there was one case. Jesse Grey. He was close to decommisioning and we put the case down as an early conversion to the teens, as we have seen happen many times before. But over the following week, cases started popping up over the globe. Operatives as young as eight, with 5 years of the kids next door left, suddenly start rebelling against their sectors and any other kid that tried to reason with them. Never, never in the entire KND history has this happened. Now, our most recent tally has suggested that over two hundred of our own have turned bad. And we don't know how many of us will turn in the coming weeks. No-one is safe. Even some of the most faithful agents we know have turned. Our scientists are starting to make the conclusion that this 'infection' is not a matter of choice; like a sickness, you cannot choose whether you contract it or not. Though they have no leads on how or why this is happening. Anyone could be next."

His voice sounded strange. Overworked, tired and unsure. And long past the playful and cheery demeanor of a child. The muffled whispers of the kids in the seats around me reached my ears, but didn't register. I was staring forward, at the podium that numbuh 263 stood on, fidgeting and afraid. I couldn't seem to register what was happening. The soopreme leader, who was supposed to put an end to the tension and the circulating worried glances standing shorter than the shyest cadet operative.

"Why..?" I breathed, though thinking there was no point to asking what was obviously unknown. This was... it felt like a story. It couldn't be real, but it was all too vivid and solid for my liking. Robert took another shaky inhale.

"Furthermore, the rebel operatives disappear after they effectively take out their teams. We have not heard anything from any of the vanished kids in the nearly two months this has been happening. One or two of them have even taken another team member with them, one that was still on out side. We don't know how or why this is happening, but with the help of every operative here, that I know you will all give, we will do anything in our power and more to find who is responsible for this." Everyone in the hall nodded seriously and determinedly.

"Now, we may not still have the skill of some of out former operatives, but we do have the skill of our own. We _do_ have the experience to conquer the toughest of problems, as they have showed us how. But, we will have to unite, unite as one organisation to overcome this seemingly unsolvable dilema. Scientists, give up your homework time and work as much as your parents will allow. We will need the mind power and technology you possess. Field agents, train to your breaking point. We have to be top of our game and one step ahead of the enemy, physically as well as mentally. Pilots, pull out every maneuver, every tactic, every strategy you have. We need to be everywhere, land and sky. Keep up, for those who fall behind will be an easy target. Look out for your own, but do not hesitate to raise a weapon on who you thought was your best friend, because they may not be themselves in the least. Keep your guard up, never turn your back, and most of all, stay true to the one cause we are all fighting for; the Kids Next Door cannot, and will not die. We are eternal, but that doesn't mean we will let them wound us without fighting back, and winning."

There was silence.

Every set of eyes was glued to that stand, where one boy had just managed to inspire millioons of kids, including himself, and convince them that even though there were many who would not be on our side for much longer, we could take the bullet as if it didn't exsist.

More silence.

I knew that numbuh 263 wasn't going to speak any more. He was too intent on keeping the moment intact. It was clear that no-one was going to say anything. This moment may have been surreal, but it was going to turn into eternity if someone didn't end it. So, I stepped in.

_For the first sector V, _I thought. _The KND isn't going down without a fight, and we're gonna make them proud._

I stood up in my seat, feeling the atmosphere weigh down on me. If I failed, I will have ruined the most memorable moment of all of these kids' time in the KND.

"Kids Next Door RULES!" I cried, eyes shut tight and white-knuckled fist raised above my head. Numbuh 202 next to me almost fell off his seat in shock, but wasn't too shaken to get up beside me, despite his usual shyness. One by one, kids around the arena began to stand. Some faces were familiar, some were new, but all of them wore the same expression of wild and defined determination, an expression that suited the Kids Next Door perfectly. Within a single minute, everyone in that one large, open hall on moonbase was on their feet. And one final cry echoed through the hearts of all who were able to hear it, and all who threw their voice into the cacophony.

"_Kids Next Door RULES!" _

**A/N: So, yeah. That's it. I promise chapter 5 will be longer and better! I'm sorry if this was disappointing, but without this chapter I couldn't continue with the story and all the juicy bits. I tried to liven it up a bit with the whole inspirational speech thing (don't ask about that, it was all my crazy mind's doing) Review if you like, review if you don't. I really don't care, as long as I can bring all you KND fans out there a bit more adult-tyranny fighting goodness! But then again, I could well be that person who sort of ruins your love of the show a bit, just 'coz of what you put in your fic or how you write... I don't know, I can never seem to see my writing from any other point than; "that's wrong" or "you should have changed that." **sigh** I'm jabbering again, aren't I? Okay, better go before my parents find out I'm still on my laptop at 9:30!**

**-Numbuh 25**


	6. Ch 5, New Life, Same Emotion

**A/N: Hey! I made it on time this week! (seriously, that is a big deal for me) Okay, this chapter is a bit iffy in my view. I don't know, because I can obviously never have a reader's view on it, so as usual, you get to tell me! I tried to give everyone a fair go in this chapter, except Abby, who gets a pretty big part in chapter 6! I also _attempted_ a little TINY bit of 3x4 and SOME 2x5. Mostly just crushy stuff that will evolve into something that is actually _ real._ Okay, no more drabble from me. READ, I say! **

Now Loading...

Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team reunion

Chapter 5- New Life, Same Emotion

"And if we know the legnth of this side of the triangle is, say, 23.5 inches long..."

Wally could not care less about pythonius'... whoever the stupid mathemactician guy was. He had his head rested on top of his hands, and right now, the pen-lined desktop centimeters away from his nose seemed like Disneyland compared to Mr. Kilkenny's math class. To say it was boring would be an insult to the other classes Wally had under the same label (which, of course, was most of them- okay, all of them. Except gym) and the last thirty-four minutes had been spent thinking up ways to sneak a TV and gaming console into the classroom, and trying desprately to remain awake to avoid another strike on his permanent reccord. Then, for about the hundred-thousandth time this period, Wally looked across the room at the girl of his dreams. Kuki Sanban was sitting up higher than Wally (then again so were ninety-five percent of the class) and half-listening to what the teacher was droning on about. The other half of her mind was obviously wandering, as she had a glazed look over her eye, and her foot absent-mindedly bobbed up and down inside its black sneaker. The lack of attention was either due to boredness or complete loss of direction in the class master's ranting. Two of the most common causes of classroom trancing. It happened to Wally a lot, though he tried hard to keep alert and not slip into that state, because things always happened when he was in the half-consious drowsiness, things that disturbed, saddened and confused him to no end. Thoughts swirled, and Wally grew sick to the stomach in anticipation. It was happening again. Kuki sitting there, like a goddess, she seemed to be glowing... The belt disappeared, the headband too, and suddenly she felt closer to his heart than ever. And he wasn't seeing her in her seat, no pen or textbook was in sight. It had all been replaced by a mountain of stuffed toys. Red and orange, pink and blue... He felt the familiar foul-tasting lump rise in his throat, and fought to keep it down long enough to escape the shrinking walls of the classroom. Before he, or anyone else in the room knew it, he was in the boys bathroom, wretching up whatever was still happily digesting in his stomach.

Flushing the bile down and heading over to the water fountain to wash the acidic taste out of his mouth, Wally wondered whether he should bother to return to class at all. He decided not to. Between his sick stomach, his dislike and loss of direction in class and what he knewe would come next, he decided it would be better, for student, class and teacher, to just 'sit this one out.' He left the bathrooms and walked down the corridor, the sterile, white-washed walls and echoing emptiness, it adding to the spaced-out feeling Wally was experiencing. Pushing open the door with a half-hearted shove with his back, Wally walked out into the overcast schoolyard. He knew that it could happen at any minute now, and it seemed to help when he could be outside. Taking a place under a tall oak tree beside the football feild, he let his head tip back until it hit the sturdy trunk of the old Oak. The thick green foliage blocked out most of the sunlight, leaving only a scattered golden dapple above him.

Then, it happened.

Wally slipped silently out of conciousness, eyes falling shut and mouth slipping open slightly. It was not by choice, but fighting, as he had learned the hard way, only mae it worse.

"_Numbuh 3? Numbuh 3! Are you okay?"_

_I was searching, searching desperately for something- no, someone, among the rubble and debris of a battle._

"_W-wally... I'm here..." releif and fear struck at the same time, and my heart missed a beat trying to cope with it all._

"_Numbuh 3! Kuki, are you hurt?" I scrambled over to her, cutting myself on the sharpened junk. Her breathing was pained but steady. I hauled her out with every muscle that still worked. I was so tired, but I could never remember why. Before I could stop it, the ground was slipping backwards, taking Kuki with it. I grasped at her sleeves her arm, her shoulder, anything that was in reach, but every attempt slipped through my fingers, and she was only dragged further from me. Everything went black, and another scene lit up behind my eyes._

"_Wally!" The voice was angry, desperate and above all, disappointed. The sheer emotion in their words cut deep into me._

"_What did you do? Wha- oh, please, no! NO!" This time, the voice wasn't directed at me. It was pained, and as it always did, it wanted me to help it though i didn't know how. "Help me, Wally, help us! We need you back... please!" I tried to respond, but words evaded me. I felt the pressure of hundreds of lives in my power. I felt like there was something I had to do, but it was just out of my reach, like Kuki..._

And after that, Wally woke with a start, sweating and gasping for air, as always. He felt alone, but little did he know that there were four other teenagers that were feeling the same way. Maybe not at that exact moment, but sure enough, they felt it.

Hoagie POV

I didn't want to fall asleep. I knew what sleep brought with it. But I couldn't control it. Three nights in a row this had happened. Three nights in a row I had sat here thinking that I was insane. And, finally, it happened.

As soon as my eyes were shut it started, and as soon as it started I wished it was over.

_I was sitting there, in a damp, cold, unfriendly room. There seemed no way out. She sat in the corner, only a little way away from me. Hugging her knees to her chest, she sobbed into her arms desperately. I couldn't shake the feeling that she shouldn't have been like that. The feeling that if she had lost hope, so had everyone else. I opened my mouth to speak, trying in some way to comfort her. But she cut me off, flinging her hand out to grab my arm._

"_Promise me you'll get us out of here, Hoagie," she breathed, her voice wet with tears. I tried to say something, but the words tangled themselves up in my throat. She persisted._

"_Please. Hoagie, tell me you'll get us out. Promise me that you won't let us die here. I need you to promise. Please, promise me," she pleaded, desperate now. Again, I got the feeling that she shouldn't have been so hysterical. I felt sick. Sick with fear, because whatever could break her could break anyone. Sick with emptiness; I could not for the life of me shake the feeling that we had to be somewhere else. And most of all, sick with rage. Whoever, whatever had made her, this beautiful, down-to-earth, flawless girl cry like this was going to feel the pain that she was right now. I inhaled deeply, attemping to mask the shake in my voice._

"_I promise."_

Nigel POV

The bell rang out loudly, startling me slightly. I had almost lost complete focus in Science, which was not like me. I hurried to collect my books and avoid the path of the stampeding students that were bursting out of classrooms on both sides of the corridor. After reaching my locker and grabbing my lunch, I set off outside to the benches near the oval. That was where I usually ate lunch, with Abby and Kuki. They usually bought their lunch, so I waited there until they had passed through the line. As I neared the shade-covered area under the oaks, something caught my eye.

There was someone sleeping under the tree.

I dropped the plasic container that held my lunch and jogged over to him. He looked disturbed, not like a peaceful afternoon nap. He looked like he was having a nightmare. I bent down and shook him lightly by the shoulder. He stirred, but didn't wake. Lowering myself down further into a crouching position, I shook again, this time a little harder. At last, his eyelids began flickering, his mouth twitched, and he sat up with a start. He looked up at me, with my eyebrows raised for his reaction. He looked startled.

"Numbuh 1...?" he mumbled.

"What?" I asked. He stared at me as if he hadn't said anything.  
"What did you say?" I asked again.

"I- I didn't say anything.." he replied groggily. It was my turn to frown in confusion.

"Hmm, I could have sworn I heard you say... never mind." I probably imagined it. There was silence for a while. Awkwardness took over.

"Are you okay?" I said, breaking the silence. He seemed thankful for the conversation.

"Yeah mate, Ah'm foine. Just a little.. tired, Ah guess," he got up, stretched and began to walk away.

"Wait! What were you doing out here?" I called after him. He just kept walking as if I hadn't said anything at all. I ran after him and blocked his path.

"Seriously.. Wally, is it? What was going on down there?"

He looked me in the eye, as if sizing me up, or trying to judge my character through just looking at me.

"Listen, man. Ah dunno who you are, but just leave me alone, okay? Ah'm foine." I knew he wasn't, but I bought it anyway.

"Okay. I'm sorry, I just wanted to make sure," I said apologetically. He sighed.

"Don't worry. Ah think Ah'm just a little groggy. Uhh, Ah don't exactly _loike_ math." He dodged my questions, only increasing my suspicion.

"I guess I'll see you around then, Wally," I said, stepping aside to walk back to the benches, where I could see Abby and kuki already sitting down. As I left him behind, I just heard him say one more thing.  
"Yeah. Ah'lll seeya... Nigel." I didn't recall telling him my name...

"Hey, Nig! Where you been?" Abby greeted upon my arrival. I told them about what had happened. Abby wasn't too worked up over it, stating simply that 'Wally sometimes found math too much to concentrate on.' Kuki, however, was more concerned.

"He was in the same class as me," she said, "He just ran from class with his hand over his mouth. No-one really knew what happened after that. From what I've heard, it's happened before." Her mouth was turned in a small, worried frown.

"When I found him, he was just sitting there... it was less sleeping an more of a sort of _trance," _I said, my voice creeping down to an almost whisper for some reason.

"Well, for Wally, he was most likely just zoned out again." Abby still blew it off as nothing out of the ordinary, but I knew what I saw, and what I saw was wally sitting against the tree, mouthing something, brows furrowed as if searching for something, jaw clenched and breathing shallow and quick. If it had happened before, it was definitely _not_ nothing. I opened my lunch, tucking in to my ham and salad sandwich. As I ate, and talked with Abby and Kuki, something came back to my mind; when he woke up, he had said something... 'number 1.' Why would he say that? And, more importantly, I almost responded...

Kuki POV

I sat with my legs crossed impatiently in my math class, absent-mindedly letting my eyes wander. Usually, I would be paying attention, but today, I was just too tired to bother. I had spent the previous night lying in bed, reluctant to fall asleep after the nightmare. The nightmare that seemed to catch me on the very night that I stopped worrying about the last time. I was running, running on a never ending surface, faces staring back at me from over the edge. And for a split second, I could pin down that person's identity. And before that second was over, it was gone. That was the real nighmare. I felt like I wasn't the real me, like I was a cover, like I was trapped. Is my mind really _my_ mind? Then, I wake up, sweat-covered and wishing never to fall asleep again. Next thing I know, I'm in class, zoned-out like some failing delinquent. When Wally ran out of class with his hand over his mouth desperately, I was brought back to attention. That is _not_ normal. And when Nigel told us what he saw under the tree, it only pushed me further to find out why. Was he having the same dreams as me? I didn't know, but I was going to find out. I didn't know if it was just my overexhausted mind or not, but Abby and Nigel seemed a little sleep-deprived as well...

Hoagie POV

_Brrrrrrring._

I left my advanced Chem. class just in time to catch Joe in the hall. Great.

"'Ay, Hoagie. Can you lend an old friend a hand with somethin' after school today? I could really use an old hand," Joe Balooka was always trying to get in with me, just because we were apparently 'old friends.' Well, all I could remember of him before high school is one day when I helped him out of a situation involving the school nurse and some rather unpleasant pie when we were both about thirteen.

"Ah, sorry Joe, no can do. I've got a.. family thing tonight," I lied. Tonight, I was planning to sit in my room until an ungodly hour working on a new project of mine. It didn't matter if I was tired. I would still be even if I did try to get some sleep. Insomnia is a cruel and unforgiving monster. I may as well get something productive done in that time.

"That's too bad. Okay, I'll get someone else to help out," he said, maybe taking the hint that I was less 'booked out' and more 'unwilling.' He stalked off down the hall, sending some juniors scattering to clear the way. Joe wasn't exactly the most friendly person I knew. I sighed and headed off to the cafeteria.

I grabbed a plate of... chicken? and headed over to a table to sit down. I usually ate in the AV club room, but today was one of the few days that I had nothing better to do. After sitting there for a few minutes, I began to succumb to boredom, and got up with my lunch to go find something to do. I headed outside, and, as usual on my 'nothing' days, I thought about joining Abby and her friends. I began to walk over there, to the interlocking trees that sheltered the benches from the sun, but, following my routine, I chickened out. There was something about the long, dark hair, the cool, in-control air about her and the laugh. The laugh that sounded like an angel's that made me think that no guy, let alone _me_, was worthy of her. So, I joined a game of six-square on the basketball court. That was always fun, especially as I am the _King_ of the game! Ha ha, why am I not a comedian?

**A/N: Here you go! Hoagie is crushing on Abby! These two are my fave KND pairing, so I just _had_ to start them off before Wally and Kuki or Nigel and Racchel. Sorry if you like them, they _will_ be involved, just, I want 2x5 to be the main pairing in this fic, by an inch. Tell me what you think; am I going on too much about the dreams? Are sector V too close after decommisioning? Please tell me what I'm doing wrong, because I keep getting the feeling that I am... okay, it's eight fifteen on a Sunday night, I've got a bowl of apple crumble and ice-cream sitting here for me and I am going on again aren't I? BYE!**

**-Numbuh 25**


	7. Ch 6, Deja vu

**A/N: Heya guys! Sorry I'm a bit late; it was my brother's birthday over the weekend and, of course, I just _had_ to go to his lazer tag birthday party! (lazer tag is the awesomest thing known to man) (I don't care if awesomest isn't a word) I also got a bad cold today, and spent the whole day on the couch watching Phineas and Ferb (next fic I will do after I've finished this one will be a KND/P and F Xover) so read on. This is fully Abby's chapter, with a little bit of the others, so Go on, read it It's not gonna hurt you...**

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Chapter 6 – Deja vu

Abby POV

"Daddy? I'm gonna go out for a walk, okay?" I called down the hall to where my father was sitting in the kitchen.

"Okay, Abigail. Yo have fun now, with the healthiness and the fresh air and the, aw, you know what I mean."  
I chuckled.

"Sure dad."

I set off on the sidewalk, breathing in the smell of early evening. This was the best time of day. Kids played on the streets, dinner was set on the table, cars pulled into the drive. It was going home time. I headed over to the park, paying no attention to the couples that strolled the stone paths or the dogs that ran playfully away from their closely following owners. at the end of our street, thinking about visiting the creek. The creek was my place. I could be alone with my thoughts there. That was the only place that the faded memories didn't scare me. Here, I almost welcomed them. Every so often, while sitting under the large willow tree that leaned out over the water, thoughts would appear in my head, thoughts that were none of my own, at least not in recent times, but I still felt a strange ownership over them. The first time it happened, I had gone home and sat up until three am, researching any possible causes for this; normal and paranormal. I looked over schitzophrenia, quickly crossing it off the list; I wasn't crazy. Period. Ghosts were also a big possibility, but I rejected that thought as well; these thoughts weren't that of an angry ghost come back to haunt me. They were pleasant, though most of the time it was only a feeling, less than a thought. Just a feeling of happiness, a feeling of friendship, a feeling of something a little more. And, after a few more completely irrational theories from crazy people on the internet, I was back to square one. So, after I finally gave up hope, I just let the feeling wash over me without resisting. it wasn't as if they were painful or unpleasant memories. I found them happy and simple, and refreshing from the sometimes complex life of a sixteen-year-old girl's life. But, after a time, the feelings began to turn... for the worse. It started one day after school, when I just had to get down there to wind down after a particularly long day.

Flashback

I sighed as I pushed my way through the thick scrub leading to the creekside. It had been a challenging day. On top of a late night andd an early rise (as per usual, 6:30 in the morning) I could not seem to let go of the suspicion that I was being watched. That made it hard to concentrate on work, and stressed me out to no end. Once I reached the clearing in the undergrowth, the deep breath of releif I expected was not at all what I got. Somehow, the normally peaceful-looking, dormant bank had aquired a nasty, unfriendly quality. Frowning in confusion and ever-so-slight frustration, and a small ball of emotion from the disappointing day combined with the now eerie atmosphere forming in my stomach, I cautiously made my way over to the base of the Willow tree and lowered myself down, as if being 'nice' to the grassy patch on the water's edge would fix the creek's 'bad mood' of sorts.

Almost as soon as my head hit the trunk of the slender, weeping form of the tree, I lost consiousness. It all happened so fast that I didn't know if I was asleep or I was having an out-of-body experience. It seemed to be both.

The feeling that I wasn't alone was still there,

ever-present as it had ever been.

My head spun. Where was I?

I got up, dusting off the imaginary dirt on my clothes. That was when I realised that I wasn't in my clothes. Instead of my usual long, dark blue, white-sleeved t-shirt with black shorts underneath, I was wearing a simple navy shirt, with a white stripe on the side of each bell-shaped sleeve. I wanted to look at them more, ponder how they had gotten on me, and more importantly, how and why I was here, but instead, I found my hands rising up to pat at the top of my head. At least my hat was still there. Again, I attempted to survey my surroundings, only to find myself starting to run straight forward, as if I had been running that way the whole time. It dawned on me. I wasn't the person in this dream, I was merely seeing through their eyes. My eyes. I was me somewhere, sometime that definitely was not now.

Runnning through the slightly dim halls, I got the feeling that something big was going down; you know, that sort of 'it ends here' kind of thing. After a while, I reached a clearing, and before I knew it, I had sprinted out into the open, vunrability washing over me, and lept over a large mound of dirt. There was a small hole in the side of the pile, and I- um, Abby of whatever time and place I was in jumped in without hesitation.

Hitting the ground with a thud, I looked back up to see a group of dirty-looking kids staring back at me. There was easily thirty of fourty of them, all staring at me. Finally, someone spoke up.

"Numbuh 5! Thank goodness, we were getting worried," said someone with a heavy English accent. It came from a boy in red, with a pair of black shades hiding his eyes.

"I'm fine, numbuh 1. And I got the book," I replied pulling something out from a satchel I only just realised I was wearing tightly around my neck. Handing it over, I noticed someone pushing through the closely-packed huddle of people. Someone that I was apparently glad to see, judging from the feeling I got now, deep in my chest.

"Abby? You're okay!" He ran over to me, catching me in a hug so tight that he made it hard to breathe. I didn't mind; I was enjoying the warmth that he gave. I smiled softly, my voice suddenly low and emotional.

"Yeah, Hoagie. Abby's okay."

He pulled away, keeping his hands firmly on my shoulders, eyeing me in concern.

"Are you sure?" he asked. His voice melted me on the spot. I was so good at staying strong, I even managed to convince myself sometimes that I was incapable of emotion. And suddenly, that wall was down.

"Hoagie, I'm- I'm fine, really," I knew I was fooling no-one, but I said it anyway. My gaze suddenly broke, though I was sure that neither me nor the Abby that was controlling me wanted to. I looked out at the other kids in the crowd, who were all either looking on obliviously or trying to avoid eye-contact all together.

"Uhm, Nigel, what are our orders?" I said in a desperate attempt to get things rolling again. He cleared his throat.

"Oh, uh, right. I think that's your decision, Abby. After all, you are soopreme leader."

I was all too aware of that fact apparently, and merely hoping that he would take over.

"Okay," I sighed. "Sector G, you try to take out their front line from the trenches. If you can't do that from there, head out with sector I and get a closer aim. Sectors J and K, you keep digging. We may be able to get closer to them and plant a few sooper-stregnth detonators close enough to take out their hideout. Sector B, get to the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.S. and find a place to refeul and get some supplies. I ain't gonna lie, we may be here a while." With that, I saluted, leaving the other kids only to copy and head off to their assigned jobs. I was surprised at myself that I could actually adopt such a purposeful, confident voice.

"And our orders are...?" Came numbuh 1's curious tone. I could tell he wanted something, but only dream-Abby could have a chance at knowing what that might be. I turned to face him, taking a deep breath.

"Nigel, you check in with moonbase. See if they need backup. And-" A lump wedged itself in my throat. "Say hi to numbuh 3 and numbuh 4 for us." He nodded obediently, leaving to complete his task.

I turned back to face Hoagie.

"Hoags, I-" I was cut off when he placed a finger on my lips.

"Don't worry. It'll all be okay, Abby. We'll get through this." His voice was soothing, and I calmed right down as soon as I heard it.

"This has just been going on too long. I- it's been almost a month!" Before I knew it I was blabbering on like an idiot. When he could finally get a word in, Hoagie spoke again.

"It'll end soon. They're coming down. Slowly, yes, but they are definitely breaking. Don't blame this on yourself," I was about to interupt and protest that it was, in fact, my fault, but he stopped me so suddenly that anybody could swear he knew I was going to.

"No, it is not your fault, Abby. Listen to me, okay? Without you, we couldn't dream of getting through this alive! Whether you believe it or not, you are what's holding us together right now. You saw how closely those guys were listening to you! They look up to you, Abby. I-I look up to you." His eyes were hidden under those tinted goggles, and suddenly, I couldn't bear not seeing them. Reaching up, I pulled off his aviator's cap along with the goggles, revealing his dusty brown hair and soft blue eyes. He, in turn, raised a hand to knock off my hat, letting it fall to the trampled ground. We both knew what was coming, but each of us tried to pretend we didn't. We got closer, breathing heavily. I had had a crush on this boy since I first met him, but I never thought it would go anywhere. Now it was going somewhere; and travelling faster than I had expected. By now we were inches apart, and I could almost hear his heart beating fast in his chest, just like mine.

As our lips finally met, everything that I had been stressing about only moments ago seemed to vanish off the face of the earth. It was just me and him and though it was a bit cliché, it felt like we were the only two people in the world. For years I had wondered what he thought of me, for years I tried to kid myself like I didn't have feelings for him, but now, I didn't have to pretend. Now, I knew he felt the same way. And I could tell he'd been waiting for this as long as I had.

The kiss went on for what seemed like years, and I didn't want it to end. But, who should walk in but Nigel having completed his check-in with moonbase and now looking for something to do. He walked in casually, looked around and spotted us in the middle of the 'room' (more an excavated hole in the ground) and froze as if he'd just witnessed a murder. I saw him out of the corner of my eye, and broke the kiss immediately. Hoagie hadn't noticed him quite yet, and was standing with a confused expression on his face, before turning around himself and dropping his jaw. Nigel just stood there for a while. I could almost hear the sitcom crickets in the background. I nervously cleared my throat, forcing the words out of my mouth.

"Numbuh 1! What's the situation at moonbase?"

He basically sighed in relief.  
"They're doing okay. Numbuh 86 has been hospitalised for Brussel sprout consumption; the adults are loading their guns with the stuff. But other than that, they seem to be handling the situation pretty well. Numbuh 362 should be able to take care of them."

Alright. That was good. The KND seemed to be handling the ambush of millions of adults pretty well. Ever since they teamed up with the teens, we've been outnumbered. And when they decided to send everyone they had to attack, we have had to fight to our limits every day. As new soopreme leader, it was more pressure on not just me, but the entire team. I just feel like it's because of me that they're so overworked. Looking back at Hoagie, he gave me a reassuring smile, as if he could read my mind. It was time to move on.

"Uh, well. We should move on," I continued. "I suggest we do some scouting from the air. It would be good to get a clear view of the field."

"Awesome! I get to fly a S.C.O.U.T?" Hoagie beamed.

I nodded. "yep."

"Sweet! Let's go!" He practically pulled me and Numbuh 1 out of the gap in the dirt and into the clearing. We jogged across into the surrounding forest, not wanting to stay out in the open too long. After walking through the trees for a while, we reached the area where we kept all our weaponry and aircraft. Hoagie was eagar and jumped right into the pilot's seat of the S.C.O.U.T.

Kids Next Door: S.C.O.U.T.

Search

Collect

Outlined

Undergrown

Terrain

Within 5 minutes we were in the air. Now this is how it was supposed to be. Except...

"We should pick up numbuh 3 and numbuh 4!" I chimed. The others were hesitant, but I got the feeling that they wanted to have the whole team together again. We picked the two up from the makeshift first aid department we had created as soon as we could manage. They were glad to see us, and dropped what hey were doing straight away to join us.

"Hi numbuh 5! Hi numbuh 2! Hi numbuh 1!" Kuki greeted us all cheerily with a hug. Wally, obviously, was more inward, but that didn't mask the fact that he was glad to be out of there. It was depressing in that place, all full of fallen soldiers and hurt operatives so desperate to get back up and keep fighting. We left after saying a quick hello to some friends.

"Phew! Glad to be outta that place!" Wally breathed. "Now where ah we goin'?"

"We," I started, "are going to check out what those adults are doing."

"Aw, Cool!"

"Yay!"

A few minutes into the flight, we were working as a perfect team again, just like old times. This, this was how it was meatn to be. Us as us not as an army. Us not having to worry every day about things that effected the entire organisation. I wanted that so, so bad... I wanted the good times back.

_Numbuh 1's leadership and slight paranoia..._

_Numbuh 2's piloting skills and all the corny puns..._

_Numbuh 3's never-failing optimism and joy..._

_Numbuh 4's tough attitude and fearless spirit..._

_Me in the middle of it all, enjoying every minute..._

_I wanted it back so bad._

I woke up, dazed, confused and overwhelmed. What had just happened? That was definitely _not_ just a dream, or I would have forgotten most of it alreay. I could remember ever second of it as if it actually happened, from the jump into the hole, to the kiss, to the branches catching in my hair as we ran through the forest, to the comfort of seeing my teammates' faces again.

The desire still burned in my chest, the same desire as I felt up there in the clouds, but more meaningful, more connected to _me_, as I was.

Sometimes, you just feel that if you want something enough, if you wish hard enough, it will just happen for you.

The hardest part of life is admitting that it won't.

**A/N: So? I know, too much in the past. 'Stop dwelling what's already passed, Abbey (my name) and get going with the future!' I will, I promise! But I like doing the gang as kids. I feel it's a little truer to the show. That's not to say that I don't like KND teen fics, 'coz I love them, but I just like seeing how they got from 10-year-olds to teens. Okay, that's it from me! Bye!**

**-Numbuh 25**

**Oh, and shoutout to Sols06; my fave Phineas and Ferb writer!**


	8. Ch 7, United Sort of

**A/N: Okay, I am so, SO sorry I missed an entire WEEK of updating. It's near the end of the term, and the teachers, instead of spacing out the assigned work over the entire symester (something, mind you, they had plenty of time to do) they decided to dump it all on us now! We (my class) counted, literally, TWELVE tests and assignments due over the space of three days! Okay, I'm sorry. This is a pretty horrible chapter in my view, but at least it's up, right? Again, SORRY!**

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Chapter 7 – United... sort of.

Kuki POV

"Kuki...? Hey, Kuki! It's 7:45 already! You gotta get up!"

...

"KUKI!"

I jumped up from under my covers, startled awake by Mushi, my younger sister. Groaning groggily, I looked over at my alarm clock, to find the hard red pannels of light reading quarter to eight.

"AH! Mushi, I'm late! Oh, god I gotta get up!"

My sister looked at me with an unimpressed glower.

"Well, _duh!_ I've been trying to wake you up for the last ten minutes! Now hurry up and get dressed before you make _me_ late too!" She burst. I cringed, while attemping to shove both my legs into my black leggings at the same time. Suddenly, Mushi's impatient scowl was replaced by a sly smirk.

"Oh, and I'll tell _Wally _that you don't want him to be 'gone for too long.' Hm, I didn't know you had a _boyfriend_!"

I froze.

Damn it! I had enough to worry about as it was.

I was sleeptalking again.

"Okay, Mushi. You can go now!" I said through clenched teeth, trying to contain my frustration.

"Wally and Kuki, sitting in a tree!" She chanted. I looked up. Something tried to surface in my mind like a thought I'd forgotten overnight, but it was gone just as quickly.

"_Mushi! _Just, go, okay? Go downstairs so I can get dressed and I'll be down as soon as I can possibly, physically magage!" She skittered out the door, still giggling at my red face, as I grabbed a green, black-lined shirt from the end of my bed.

Ten minutes later I was ready and down the staircase, finding Mushi standing on the bottom step, arms folded, foot tapping repeatedly on the floorboards. She looked like an angry old history teacher. She really needs to lighten up. Grabbing the money for lunch left on the counter by my mom, I headed out the door, to meet her where she _already_ had her hand on the door handle.

"Geez, Mush, you coulda waited at least a _couple_ more minutes," I mumbled. She just rolled her eyes, making it _very_ clear to me that it was, and I quote; "8:15: The latest that _anyone_ in the _entire _history of the _universe_ has _ever_ left for school."

Well, after dropping that little black-haired ball of negativity off at school (Mushi is the only one that can get me this angry. Most of the time, I loved her, but just those few moments...) I headed off around the corner to Gallagher High. I parked my green mini in the parking lot and walked up across the oval to my locker in the main hallway.

"Hey, Kuki!" I heard someone call me from behind. I turned to find Isabelle Tabbs (or, Bella-tab, as she was called) from the drama department smiling back at me.

"Oh, hi Bella. What's up?" I replied, opening my locker.

"Ms. Coaby told me to tell you that there's a meeting at lunch," she said, leaning against the wall next to me. "We have to work out who's gonna supervise the juniors in their dressing room." Last year, the juniors had completely _trashed_ their 'dressing room' backstage of the auditorium. This year (to avoid thousand-dollar repair fees) they were going to make _us_ supervise them.

"Kay, I'll be there," I confirmed, stuffing my bag into the teensy hole in the wall that was my locker.

"Coolio. I'll tell Ms. Coaby. Seeya then, Kuki!" With that, she bounced off to do whatever else she had to do.

The bell rang, striking fear into the hearts of all who forgot to set their alarm. I let out a small 'meap!' before grabbing what were (hopefully) my books for English and headed off, taking the long way to avoid a particularly peeved-looking guard- uh, teacher stalking down the hallway.

"...And after that, you will have to come up with an advertising campaign, and link it to ancient Rome in some way. The report for this should be at least three pages long and, this year, we have had the amazing oppertunity, thanks to some generous grants from the state government, for the best group's product or service to be pitched to the school board. And if they like it enough, who knows, the actual advertising and producing companies could end up hearing about it..." While this was an exciting concept (who doesn't want to be the head of a crazy-successful comany?) the teacher's voice started to drift away into oblivion as I looked over the assignment sheet, lifting up one page to look at the list of criteria. A three-page report, advertising campaign and explanation of the symbolism used in the ads. This was going to be torture. Especially since we weren't allowed to pick our groups. In short, history wasn't one of my favourite subjects.

"And now for the groups," the teacher said, her slightly raised tone cutting through my daydream.

"Sophie, Alan, Mia, Jack and Elanore, you are group 1. Heather, Cody, Izzy, Gwen and Duncan will be group 2," this went on three more times until finally I heard my name.

"Kuki, I'm putting you with Abby..." Yes! A lucky break! Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad...

"...Hoagie, Wally and Alisha." Hm, not too horrible. And with Hoagie in our group, we'd get full marks for the informational part for sure.

Alisha stuck her hand up in defiance, with a bit of a smirk buried somewhere in her expression.

"Alisha, I'm sorry but I _cannot_ change you to another group," Mr. Anandale sighed, shaking his head.

"It's not that, Mr. A. I'm going to Paris in a week, and I'll be gone for a month. I can't really do the assignment at all." Okay, so that explained the smirk.

Ah, Paris. Every girl's dream.

Mr. Anandale spoke again, crossing something off on his piece of paper and writing something else in.

"Okay, so I'll replace Alisha in group 6 with... Nigel."

The brit across the room jumped slightly at the mention of his name. The top of his jacket was slightly off position, an his eyes looked darker than usual. Classic signs of sleep-deprivation.

Mr. A finished announcing the groups, and we were sent off to start thinking up ideas. I made my way over to where Abby sat. Hoagie was already over there, starting to jot something down on a notepad, pointing things out to her here and there; '...So we can make a billboard design, and if I can get some neon lights and electrical tape, I can make it actually light up in time with the music!' Typical of the tech-genius that could turn a simple mp3 player into a fully-functioning electronic planner.

"Hey! So, what have we got so far, Einstein?" I asked, hopping up to sit on the desk and crossing one leg over another.

"Actually, I prefer to think of myseld as more of a modern day John Presper," he replied, as if that was a household name.

Over walzed the tall, confident, blue-eyed breath of summer air with an Australian accent. That I was, uh- _so_ not obsessing over.

"Soow, guys. What're uh, _we_ gonna do?" He asked, pulling out a chair and dropping himself into it, casually tapping a pen against the side of the table.

"Well, I think a clothing store would be a cool idea," came Nigel's reply as he walked over, setting down his books and taking his place at the table.

"Yeah, if you're a cruddy _girl_," Wally retorted, raising an eyebrow.

"But think about else will be choosing products that are aimed at one feild, while with a clothing franchise, we can aim it at people of all ages. And, I beg to differ about the 'girl' thing. Unless you're too much of a _man_ to wear clothes." _Burn._

"Yeah, whateva. Okay then," came Wally's reply. Hoagie lit up, his eyes imitating the invisible lightglobe above his head.

"Yeah! That's awesome! We could make TV ads- and, and billboards, and radio ads and- gah! The posssibilities are endless! ENDLESS, I tell you!"

Abby looked at him blankly, before slowly reaching up to the top of her head, then slapping him hard with her red hat, receiving a small, defensive 'ow...' from Hoagie.

"I agree with Nigel and Hoagie. This could make a pretty cool campaign," I spoke up. This could lead to a good mark in my next report. Which leads to good exam scores in senior year. Which leads to a place in a good college. Which leads to a good job. ...I'm overthinking this, huh?

Anyway, in short, I liked the idea.

"It's not that I disagree. It's just that, I thought that Mr. _Prosper _over here could use a touch of reality," Abby replied without missing a beat. Hoagie cleared his throat.

"Um, actually it's _Presper_. Not Prosper," he corrected.

"Whatever, toolbox."

I got back onto the topic.

"So, we need a name for our brand. What should it be?" I queried. I got a mixture of responses.

"How about _Breakout?_" Nigel suggested. Abby disagreed, pointing out that the name made us sound like a pimple cream. Wally came up with 'Slash,' but that was strongly rejected by everyone else. We went on like this for what felt like ages; 'Neutron' from Hoagie, 'Green Youth' from Nigel (could that guy _be_ any more out of it?)

"_Well_... we could use _sixteen_, since we, y'know, _are _sixteen," I said. Wally raised an eyebrow.

"Are we tryin' ta sell clothes here, or high-heeled shoes?" he said somewhat harshly.

"Okay, sheesh, I get your point. You don't have to be so mean about it," I said quietly. His skeptical look dissapated and was replaced by one of apology and embaressment.

"I- sorry, I didn't mean it like, um, like that. Really."

Abby smirked as if she knew something I didn't (what could that be?), before speaking up with her own idea.

"What do you think of _Teens_ _Next Door_?" She chirruped. Instantly, I loved the idea. It was like it was meant to be.

"Awesome!" I agreed seconds after she had spoken.

"That's the best idea we've had all day!" Nigel burst. His eyes were getting visibly heavier again, and anyone could tell he was desperate to finish with the names.

"Yeah, that could work, Ah guess," Wally brightened up. Hoagie was so bored that he took this excuse of a celebration to go completely insane again.

To be honest, I think something was getting to him a bit.

"That's GOLD! Woo! Okay, we have the name! This is awesome! Let's think of something now..." he drifted off at the end. I decided to go with it. After all, 99% of the time, he was sane.

"Yeah? And what would that something be?" I questioned.

"Uhm, I don't know..." he admitted, "Something!" Which earned him another smack, courtesy of Abby's hat. (another 'ow..') Nigel decided to get us back on track, as we needed so many times.

"So, what kind of clothes are we gonna sell?" he pushed, "and how in the name of Godzilla are we meant to link it to ancient Rome?" There was a simultaneous 'hmm..' all round.

"Our clothes could be based around Rome?" Abby put forward, though her answer sounded more like a question.

"That... could work, if we did it right," I said, contemplating possible designs and outfits. It looked pretty good in my mind.

"Yeah! Y'know, I think we're onto something here," was Wally's response. He'd really lightened up since the whole awkwaed apology thing.

"Um, how about our motto is 'Centuries old, decades young." Hoagie said, more calmly now, laying his hands palm-down on the table, stretching out on either side of his body like a buisiness executive pitching an idea.

"I like it!" I cried. Things were finally clicking into place.

For the first time since our group had met up in the centre of the room, I looked around at the other small divisions of our class, and was slightly distressed upon seeing them far ahead of us; most of them already on laptops or jotting down ideas and marketing lines on messy notepads, some with balled up and rejected sheets of lined paper laying abandoned in a place vaguely near the rubbish bin. I felt a bit behind at that point, but was reassured when I turned back around to face our group, only to see Abby listening intently to the ideas that were pouring out of the three boys in front, next to and behind her, lightly turning the ones that were completely unfitting or just not right down, and using her weapon of choice (her hat, of course) to add to the rejections that just needed a bit more force in them (these were reserved for ideas that were utterly out of line). I joined in, and after a mere few seconds, I was up to speed with what we had come up with so far and contributing ideas of my own.

Geez, for a mish-mash of two friends, one new addition, and another two almost-strangers, we worked pretty damn well as a team.

And suddenly, after almost an hour of floundering around, looking for an idea to latch on to, we finally had our target in sight. Now, we just had to find our bow and arrow.

**A/N: So, that's that. Bad, cliché chapter over, (hopefully) good and exciting chapter up soon! We have a long weekend this week, and Thursday's a student-free day, so I'll be spending those days writing; Yay! Anyway, another inevitable apology from me for my inexusable lateness (..sorry). Hey, I am actually wide-awake yet painfully exhausted at 2:20_AM_ on a Saturday _just _to finish this for you guys. Hey, there's probably only 5 of you reading anyway, but any excuse is a good excuse when it's an excuse to stay up late! ; )**

**Goodnight, Fanfiction!**

**-xoxo, Numbuh 25**


	9. Ch 8, Under Stress

**A/N: I'm back! And I am exactly quarter of an hour early! (over here it's 11:45 on Friday night) anyway, I should be able to update fairly consistantly for the next few weeks, as all of our major assignments and tests are over! (and there was much rejoicing!) and there is only two weeks of school left! (more rejoicing!) and I will probably be spending about 85-95% of my holidays writing. I did my English oral under the 'my passion theme' on writing. You would not believe how amazing it felt when people came up to me afterwards telling me to publish my story. EEK! **

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 8- Under Stress

"Robert? A-are you okay? You seem strange lately," Jamie spoke so quietly that I almost didn't hear her. I didn't blame her for thinking that. But then, she really should have known what was causing me to be so unfocussed and closed off. I sighed deeply.

"Sorry, Jamie. I- just, everything that's going on lately, makes me wish... I dunno, that..." I didn't want to say it. It was like the thought that you knew no-one would take lightly, but you yourself couldn't deny that it was true. Unfortunately, Jamie Clearway was one of the few people on Earth (and moonbase) who could read me like a book.

"No! Rob, you can't just bail on everyone else! That just makes more of them believe that we can't handle this! Look, I know you've taken this hard, and we are all feeling a bit, for want of a better word _vunerable_, but I just want to make sure you know that we're all here for you, just as much as we're here for each other." Wow. Girl knew how to make a point. But I was determined to win this one.

After all, she may be my best friend, but I had to let all this out on someone, right? And if best friends couldn't understand that sometimes it was just too much, then who could?

"But for how long, Jay? We don't know how much more the entire organisation can take! Any one of us could turn at any minute of every day from now until- until..." That was the worst part. We all knew that this whole nightmare of a situation had to come to an end, but thinking about _how_ it would end was just pure torture. Hope tried to convince us we would win, but then, hope and reality could be two _very_ different things.

"Until...?" Jamie repeated. Well, rather, she was 'accentating the flaws of my belief that we were doomed, and using anything I had missed a beat on to her advantage.'

Dang, she is _good_. "Rob, we can't think about 'until' before we sort out 'now.' And according to 'now,' you are not going anywhere. So, if you want to get to 'until' any time soon, you better get yourself a renewal on your faith, or it's going to be a miserable 'now' from here _until_ forever!"

_What?_

That made no sense to me whatsoever, but no way on Earth I was going to let her know that.

"Jamie, I want to- I want to call a game of tag," I admitted. I had wanted to now for a long while now, but I just didn't want to actually do anything about it, for the exact reason that she had just stated; if I bailed, then I was officially giving up hope. And that meant that almost everyone else would too.

_What good am I as soopreme leader if I can't even convince myself that we can get through this?_

I asked myself that on almost a regular basis now.

"Robert Greene, do you remember when you were first made soopreme leader?" Jamie questioned, though she knew the answer perfectly well that I did.

I suddenly flashed back to that day.

I thought I would be on top of the world for the rest of my life.

But now, it feels like the world is lying on top of me.

And it's laughing.

_Flashback_

"_And so, fellow Kids Next Door, it is with a heavy heart and a sincere regret that I must resign from my post as soopreme leader. I need to get back to my team, back to field work. At the start, I felt sure I could do this; I thought that if I could handle the field work, I could tackle an office job in my sleep. But, as it turns out, it takes a lot more than that to run an organisation. It takes something that I don't think I have anymore." _

_That wasn't true, and every single kid in that arena knew that like they knew the sky was blue. Abby Lincoln was one of the best Soopreme Leaders we had ever had. No-one, save for maybe her own sector, knew why she was stepping back so suddenly. It was certainly shocking to all of us._

_Even I, a mere rookie, having graduated the Cadets Net Door only months before, knew that this was going to be a defining moment in my time as a KND operative. It always was when a Soopreme Leader decided to resign._

"_But, my friends, I will say this; just because I am no longer your leader, doesn't mean I have lost faith. The circumstances under which I have been forced to step back are not ones that I am on good terms with. So, I leave you with one last order. _

_Stay true, guys." She finished, a tear formed in her eye and a catch in her throat threw her breathing out of time._

"_For one last time, Kids Net Door, I take the greatest honour in leading you, for old time's sake."_

_I could feel it coming._

_One last cry, and then it would be off with everyone, some scrambling to find a place in which they could never be found, some ready and eager to be tagged._

"_Kids Next Door RULES!" Came Abigail Lincoln's final solitary cry. We followed on, our raised fists acting as a salute to all the victories Abby had lead us to._

"_Kids Net Door RULES!"_

_There was silence._

_Then, she spoke up._

_We knew what was coming._

"_As a now former soopreme leader, I would like to say a few words," she said calmly, walking steadily over to numbuh 86, who was pretending to not be crying at all._

"_...TAG! You're it!" And with that, Abby (along with everyone else) was gone, leaving numbuh 86 alone where once stood millions of kids on which to unload the burden currently attatched to her by an unbreakable tie._

"_Ah! I'm it! Oh, what'll I do...?" she whined, looking around for options and finding none.  
"Hm. Deja vu moment..."_

I honestly don't know how it got from there to me and Abby in the corner of the skydeck on Moonbase, me attempting to hide myself, her attempting to get rid of the 'it' label across her forehead.

"Abby? I... please don't tag me," I had said. She just looked at me, the smile of someone who'd been-through-this-before on her dark features. She looked at me with something that I hadn't seen before; I expected desperation, but instead I saw almost a willingness, a sort of 'I've had my time, now I have to move on' vibe. Then, she spoke, words that I would never forget.

"Robert, I watched you on your first day, I watched all of you. I was there when you graduated, and I have heard nothing but good things about you since then. You, you may be a rookie, but you deserve this, kiddo." I was so taken aback that I just stood there. She continued as if that was completely normal.

"Look, I'm not giving you a choice. I didn't have one when I started as Soopreme leader. No-one ever does, but no-one ever regrets it." I never thought about it that way. It never occurred to me that she may not have _chosen_ this job.

Suddenly, I wanted to do it. I wanted to do the organisation proud. She reached a hand out slowly, resting it on my shoulder.

"Tag, kid. You're it."

I was only seven.

Now, I was taken back to the office, where Jamie stood stubbornly in front of me, refusing to let this go.

"Well?" She inquired.

"I-" I was about to answer, but then realised that I didn't know what to say. I flashed qickly through all the marking moments of my life in the KND; graduating, my first mission, taking the oath as I was officially named Soopreme leader.

Now I knew what to say.

"Jamie. This agency is _not_ going down without a fight. I have no doubt about that. I just don't really know yet how much effect my actions have. I- I just think I'm too young. I'm not used to being... noticed."

Jamie sighed deeply, finally taking a seat on the opposite end of my desk.

"Robert, I'm going to level with you here. At first, I thought you _were_ too young. I mean, we've never had a soopreme leader under the age of eleven, and you only just _turned_ eleven two months ago. But when you directed that first mission, when you sent Stickybeard's entire fleet packing in record time, I was speechless. If anyone's going to get us through this, it's you."

I couldn't believe it. I honestly could not comprehend that she thought that about me. I suddenly felt a lot more worthy of this than before.

"Jamie..."

"Now before you go blaming yourself again, just-"

"I'm not giving up my role," I intercepted. Jamie looked up, stunned, but relieved all the same.

"Say what now?"

"I'm staying. Jamie... thanks. I really needed someone to remind me why I love this job."

I beamed. She beamed.

Cliché? Oh, heck yes. Less heartwarming? No way in the universe.

"Alright, dude. I gotta go do some paperwork. You're awesome, and don't forget it!" She joked, starting to get up and walk out of the room.

"Not on you're lifetime, man!" I played along.

"You mean woman," she corrected.

"You mean girl," I finished.

"Okay, that's enough. I really have to finish this report. You should know, you were the one who set the deadline!" Man, she would not_ stop! _But then, I didn't mind playing about a bit.

"Hah, yeah. And I can move it _up_ any time I want!"

"I am fully aware of that, thank you _very_ much!" Was the mock-annoyed reply.

"Okay, get yourself outta here! I'll send ya up a cookie." And with that, she was gone, leaving me only to think that there was never a more amazing decommisioning officer in the Kids Next Door. Scratch that, the _entire_ KND.

Wally POV

I walked down the hallway to my brother's room, bouncing the football in my hands as I went.

"Ay, Joe! You wanna come play some footy with me and dad?" I called through the door.

There was silence for a few seconds.

"Huh?" Came the reply, finally.

I sighed and opened the door slightly, poking my head in through the gap.

"You wanna come play some footy?" I asked again. He seemed pretty foussed on some sort of paper (homework?) that lay on his cluttered desk. He looked at me, then at the football. Then at me. Back to the football. It seemed as if this simple decision was causing an internal battle of some sort.

"I really do want to..." He said his voice almost a slight moan.

"Homework got ya down?" I queried. I looked at the desk, and the papers strewn across it, as well as on the ground where they missed, or fell out of, for that matter, the brimming paper-bin in the corner. He thought for a moment, like he was trying to choose his words carefully.

"Uh, yeah," he answered.

"Ah understand. Well, me and dad'll be at the park if ya change your mind," I gave a small mock-salute and headed out to the door. I found myself feeling sad that my brother was doing _homework_ instead of learning how to play an _actual_ game.

"Joe's got homework ta do. He's stayin' here," I said to my dad as he looked to me.

"Aw, that's a shame, Wal. I knew you were lookin' forward to teachin' him the game ta day. Maybe sum other time," he said in reply.

It was true. I was planning to give my little brother a lesson in the entire game of Rugby League. I wasn't usually such a sentimental dork, but this was a tradition in our family. And I was in no world about to let that tradition get lost just because we were in another country.

Oh, well. I guess I could take him out some other time. And there was always the trip to Australia, where we could learn with all our cousins and uncles and sometimes even aunts, but I really wanted him to know how to play _before_ we left. I was going to ask dad if we could get tickets to a Manly game.

But if homework (cursed thing that is) was keeping Joey back from that, all I could do was increase my hatred of the concept.

Joey POV

I let out a deep sigh, trying again to clear my head. My mind was just a jumble of half-formed ideas and concepts that I'd tried hard to understand.

I was attempting to think of some possible way to protect us from being 'turned' as the process had been dubbed by the other kids. But so far... nothing. Nada, zilch, zip, zero, nothing. I was about to scrunch up another piece of paper covered with meaningless scribbles and little drawings, and lob it into the bin (or the floor around the bin) across the room. But something at the door stopped me. I heard my brother's voice, but the words were indistinguishable through the heavy wood door.

"Huh?" I asked, hoping that would be enough to tell him to either a) Speak louder, or b) Open the door.

He chose option b).

When he asked me if I wanted to play footy with him and dad, I was honestly excited. One, because it was sort of like a coming of age thing, like 'you get to play, you're officially one of us.' I know it sounds strange. And two, a small contributing factor to this excitement was the prospect of getting away from the desk and leaving my tired and overused mind back here for a bit. I wanted to go, but... I had to work. If I didn't get this done today, who knows how many kids would wake up tomorrow to find their teams are acting like teens, or worse, acting like teens themselves. I wasn't the 2x4 officer of our sector, but if I at least had the _idea_ for some sort of protection today, I could get Jake and some of the other scientists on it by tomorrow.

When Wally asked me if what I was doing was homework, I thought a bit before saying 'yes.' I wasn't really comfortable with lying to my brother, but techinically I _was_ telling the truth. I mean, I'm at home, and I'm working, right? But it wasn't until I heard Wally and dad talking downstairs about 'teaching me the game' that I changed my mind from 'Got to finish this' mode to 'Screw this, I wasn't going anywhere anyway' mode.

He was going to teach me!

That was like a dream come true for me. Some times I think Wally thinks that I'm losing my Aussie background here. He tries hard to stop it, but he doesn't realise that it doesn't need stopping because it's not happening. I want to learn everything I can about Oz, and I am _stoked_ for our trip later this year. But hearing those words from him just set me off like a fire cracker. I grabbed any two socks plus my shoes and thundered downstairs as fast as my legs would go (and when that wasn't fast enough, I stepped back and let gravity do its work), and caught the both of them just as they were leaving the front door.

-(*)-

Wally grabbed Joey as he bolted past him, though his legs kept going and came off the ground after him.

"Woah, woah, woah. Calm down, man," Wally said, looking down to the excited little blondie below, "Changed our minds, 'ay?" Joey just looked up, smiling wildly and, his fringe creating a shadow over his eyes that reminded Wally of himself.

"I wanna come! I wanna come!" He blurted out, the surge of energy still in action.

"Great! Now we've got tha whole gang togetha!" Their father cried, patting the two boys on the shoulder.

Wally smiled; "Well, what 'ah we waitin' round for?"

In a while, they were at the park, past the trees and nearing the oval, the dew on the light-green blades sparkling in the afternoon sun. Their father grabbed the football out of Wally's hands playfully, before kicking it out into the field.

"Okay, mates. Let's play," he announced.

Both the younger boys began sprinting out to retreive the maroon-and-white ball that was now bouncing uncontrollably on the damp grass, changing direction with every rebound.

So, Wally and the boys' father began teaching the littlest Beatles how to play the game that had them bowling each other over and covered in mud and grass stains within fifteen minutes. And for all three of them, it was one of the best times they had ever had with each other.

-(*)-

I looked out onto the feild, watching the two boys and their father fighitng over the ball. _Pathetic._ I payed attention to the smallest one especially. After all, he _was_ the reason I was here. He seemed so carefree out there, but then, most of them did.

_At first._

The start of the procedure was usually boring, but every now an then you got a kid that wasn't as utterly predictable as the rest. This kid, well, I wasn't sure yet.

I would be soon though. After a little more observation, I would be ready to start with the good stuff. Then, there would be one less bratty _kid_ out there. Well, as far as their mind state was concerned, anyway.

I must say, though, this boy reminded me of someone. And, according to the strange mixture of deja vu and hatred that whoever I was reminded of was someone that I _definitely_ did not like. I consulted some papers; the boy's name was Joey Beatles, he was in the team they called 'Sector V,' he was nine years old, and had been a member of the (cursed) Kids Next Door for between four and five years. Hm, fairly standard. And it wouldn't be a waste of time turning him over, seeing as he would be a kid for another four years. He seemed like as good a target as any. Right, now I just had to figure out how to get him alone and unprotected. Then, I could really get down to buisiness.

I allowed myself a small smirk as I took a final glance up at the young boy on the grass field. The thought of him being on our side in under a month gave me the maniacal genius feeling that I just _lived_ for. I checked the time, then backed into the undergrowth, and, after a short trip though some trees and bushes (I liked to get into the hardest-to-reach positions. It lessened the chances of someone stumbling onto my observation point) I slid into the driver's seat of a sleek pitch back car.

_Now, it's go time._

It was a long car trip, and I passed by street after street of humble and methodically-working household, wondering how many of them contained future victims. At least half of them, surely. Although, a few may well house 'kids' that I am already done with. That was the hardest part, the part _after_ I was done. There was always the small chance that the child's parents would notice something wrong when they started acting like a teenager at ten years old, but I have a suspicion that the parents are either completely oblivious, or enjoy a less... _disruptive_ child in the house. In essence, I was doing them a favour.

Finally, I turned into the driveway of an old abandoned warehouse. The concrete was cracked, and the going was bumpy as I guided the car over them, pulling to a halt in an imaginary parking space. It didn't matter where I parked; there was only one other car here, and a virtually zero chance of anyone else arriving.

I locked the doors (also unnecessary) and trodded up the neglected path, being careful to keep my head down and make my presence as unknown as possible. Confidence and visual pride were two things that made it very easy to go from 'what's he doing there?' to 'that doesn't look legal' and then I was one call to the police away from being shut down. And we couldn't have that, no. I was too close to victory.

I reached the door and rapped a fist on it. There was the sound of rustling papers and something being knocked over, followed by a word that I'd rather not repeat, and finally, a dark face at the now open door.

"Oh. You're here. Why-" I cut her off. I just couldn't stand unnecessary chit-chat.

"It doesn't matter. I have a new target to get started on. Get started on the computer. You're looking for a Joey Beatles." The look on her face went from mildly annoyed at what may have interpreted as my ''rude interuption' to slight puzzlement.

"_Joey _Beatles? I didn't know that twerp had a brother," she mumbled. I ignored. Like I said, I had a strong distaste for anything that wasn't strictly buisiness.

I walked swiftly over to the bench in the middle of the room, checking on some concoctions that I had left to boil while I was out. My attention was quickly caught by a slightly red-tinged liquid that seemed to be attempting an escape via the side of the bench and the floor. I looked over to where the girl was sitting completely upright on a computer chair, clearing my throat sternly.

"Yes?" She asked, as if there was nothing out of order.

"Care to explain?" Was my curt reply, as I gave a sharp nod towards the sowly expanding puddle of pale red on the floor.

"We all make mistakes," she said rather obnoxiously, before trying to turn back to the computer and make herself look too busy to talk.

"Excuse me? _All _of us, huh? Well, that had better change soon if you plan on taking down those Brats Next Door! We cannot afford mistakes, idiot girl! That just gives them time to catch up! And once they catch up, which, I assure you, is _not _going to happen under my watch, they will fight. And fight hard. And even if we've taken out one hundred or so operatives, they are still millions strong!" Instead of the intimidated expression I expected from my 'assistant' (great assistant she is), I instead got one raised eyebrow, an ignorant 'whatever' and probably some thoughts questioning my mental state. _She was so predictable._ I almost literally growled at the sheer cheek of the girl.

"Just, clean it up. I don't want nightmares as well." She stomped off to carry out the task, and I took over her position on the computer. The screen showed an overview of Joey Beatles' life as a KND operative, as well as some of his stregnths. Espionage, Hand-to-hand combat, the usual. Nothing to suggest that this kid was in any way different from the others. Flicking the computer onto standby, I strode back over to the bench. Now I had to be creative. How was I going to get this kid alone. Usually I just waited until they were just going to bed, but lately I'd been finding that the kids had protection on them even then. Heck, some of them even had motion sensors set up. That was, I assumed, now that we had 'turned' a considerable amount of operatives, because word had gotten out about it and now they'd be enouraged to watch themselves and those around them more carefully. Ah, paranoia. It made this job so much more interesting just to see how bad the thought of having their minds invaded could effect these helpless little delinquents. But then, it was quite a bit easier to catch these kids and inject them when they had nothing to fight back with. Of course, they would always try to fight themselves, but the chemical worked quickly, and they would soon barely have enough energy to pull the trigger on a gumball gun than get up and fight. Then they were implanted with the device and the waiting game began.

I began thinking of the little snot-nosed brats now, irritated to the point of infuriation by merely the thought of them running around as if they owned the place, playing their little games and... yes. Yes, that was how I was going to get the Joey kid on his own. It was so simple. Once again, I rewarded myself with a smirk of anticipation, looking forward to putting my plan into action.

**A/N: Ohh! The first appearance of the villain! Has anyone figured out who this guy's 'assistant' is yet? Shoutouts in next chapter to whoever reviews with the right answer! Go on, guess! Okay, tell me if you found this chapter confusing/had too many character changes, and I'll work on that for next time. Until then, I leave you with a quote from the show Friends;**

**Ross: I _AM _DOCTOR MONKEY!**

**Hasta la vista baby!**

**-xoxo, Numbuh 25**


	10. Ch 9, Evil Plots and New Ideas

**A/N: Hey! Back again for the ninth installment! This chapter has a few bits that I'm not sure about; like Fanny's bit, for example. I'm not even sure if that bit is worthwhile, but I wanted her in this Fic, so she shall be in the Fic! Anyway here you go!**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

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Chapter 9-Evil Plots and New Ideas

"Uh, Colter? What are you _doing? _You've been in there for, like, an hour. Are you done yet? I have places to be, y'know!" She called, asking for the fifth time in thirty minutes why I had shut myself in the lab, for, as stated by her; 'like, an hour.' In reality, I was perfecting what I could say was one of my most ingenius plans yet. I didn't answer her, just like every other time she had tried getting an answer out of me. I didn't care if she 'had places to be,' I had an organisation of millions of kids that just wouldn't quit to destroy. I didn't know what she had to do, but I could say without question that my needs outranked hers. I looked again over the videos that I had collected over the two days sinse I had first started on the Beatles boy. I had been watching the Beatles' household for the last two days, observing how things functioned (and sometimes didn't function) and I had figured out a few things;

Joey, the target, arrives home from school at approximately 3:25 every day, while his older brother, despite being dismissed earlier, doesn't arrive home until approximately 3:40

The family was leaving for Australia in about 2 months, meaning I had exactly that amount of time to get Joey infected

The boys didn't always seem to get along, but they were close enough for it to be acceptable for the older one to take the younger out on a regurlar basis

And that was what I was counting on. Forging the note wouldn't be too hard, according to some of the tests the older brother had attempted (unsuccessfully) to hide from his parents, all I had to do to make it convincing was make a lot of spelling and grammar mistakes; i.e. this was going to be easy.

"Seriously! Could you, maybe, wrap it up sometime? A sixteen-year-old has more to do than plot against some insignificant kids!" Came the obnoxious drone of that worthless assistant I had. I couldn't even remember her name. Ella? Annie? Ah, that was it. Anna.

Why couldn't I have gotten one of the older ones? I would have liked to have had someone of at _least_ twenty-one; there was so much talk about the young adult villains lately, I would have enjoyed testing that claim myself. But _no_, apparently they were all busy 'collecting intel' from the enemy and 'going to college.' Whatever happened to commitment? You want a future in evil, yet you're taking a course in modern art? What good is that going to do you? What, are you going to _symbolise_ the Kids Next Door into submission?

So, I was stuck with an uptight, prissy brat who was almost just as bad as the kids themselves. I did have to hand it to her, the girl knew how to organise. But that is a small, miniscule benifiet amongst a _lot_ of annoyance.

After another fifteen minutes, I finished with the forgery and exited the room, only to find a very hard-faced Anna staring back at me with gritted teeth. She began ranting at me, something about 'having a schedule to keep,' and, 'She could leave whenever it suits her;' I wasn't really listening. I rarely did to her.

"Are you EVEN listening to me?" I mentally answered her with the before-mentioned response.

"Honestly, I feel like I'm trying to talk to a baboon or something!" _The feeling is neutral._

~(*)~

I flew down the corridor, knocking over at least five other students as I went. Because of the unbelievably _stupid_ Mr. Daral, I was late to Volleyball practice. Uh, _boys_. Finally reaching my locker, I twisted the lock so hard that my body turned with it. I went so fast that I missed the numbers and had to do the combination twice.

Once the annoyingly tiny locker was open, my sports uniform basically falling out on top of me, I slammed the metal door closed, sending a dull ringing through the hall. Within a few seconds I was out of sight and halfway to the gymnasium (knocking over a few more of the smaller kids in the process).

"Fanny Fulbright, you are late!" Ms. August scolded as I burst into the Gym in my sport uniform less than five minutes later, disrupting a tactics-talk the PE teacher was conducting.

"I-Ah'm sorry, Ms. A. I... I had... it was... It's a _long_ story," I gasped out, the four-minute change taking its toll. I started trying to explain that the before-mentioned _stupid _Mr. Daral had kept me in because of some 'threat' I gad given Patton in class. It wasn't a _threat_, I only told him that if he touched me or any of my stuff again, I would give him pain in places he didn't know he had. It was merely an instruction to stop bugging me and shut up.

And he totally, _100% _deserved it. So I gave up and told her the shortened version.

"Yeah, well, get over here. You've already missed the first ten minutes of training.

I complied, walking quickly over to the small whiteboard that the team was was gathered around.

"So, what genius plan 'ave we come up with this time?" I asked , sitting down and giving the whiteboard a once-over.

"So, basically, we're thinking, get in there, play as hard as we can, and beat the whoop outta the other team," Sarah Di Amantis said cockily.

"I like it," I replied, copying her smirk.

Ms. A spoke up.

"Okay, girls. That's enough chat. I want three laps around the oval _now!" _She ordered. We took off, recing each other for first place.

As far as the rest of the kids here were concerned, our entire team is made up of some of the best (and most competetive) athletes in the school, though some were less eagar to admit to it. Patton Drilovski was one of those few. He was on the football team, and though our sports were on almost opposite ends of the sporting scale, we took the competition seriously. That boy was such an idiot. In my opinion, he should be sent back to middle school. Sure, he's not a _horrible_ football player, but the team (captained by me) had won _six_ regional volleyball championships. So what if Patton was followed around by a hoard of those girly-girls at recess, so what if he never looked at me or talked to me like I was a normal person? It didn't matter. I was better than him. I didn't need validation from some stupid, incompetent, numb-skulled, athletic, confident... _BOY!_

I chased the thought out of my head and sprinted off after Sarah, who was slowly taking the lead.

~(*)~

After that _dream_ I had near the tree at the creek, I was relectant to go back. It wasn't because it was a _bad_ dream, it was almost enjoyable at parts, but it was just the sheer reality of it. In any case, I definitely wasn't eagar to get back. But even so, here I stood, leading Kuki, Hoagie, Wally and Nigel through the bushes to the clearing.

How did I get here, you ask? Good question.

See, it started with a conversation about psycology...

!Flashback!

Earlier that day...

"Abby! You're early!" Called Hoagie from where he sat on top of a table in Room 27.

"Could say the same to you," I replied cooly. It was another history lesson, and of course, we were to continue with the 'advertising campaign' assignment.

"So, Mr. _Presper," _I continued, secretly proud of the fact that I had remembered that name. I heard Hoagie mumble something, looking surprised and a little pleased, but I couldn't distinguish any words.

"So- uh, you wanna go over the basic ideas again?" He suggested quickly. I agreed, and he pulled out the sheet that contained all our best ideas scribbled down less-than-neatly in varied styles of handwriting. We had a lot of really good ideas on there. Apparently, the faster and wilder the thoughts came, the better they were.

Hm, go figure.

"Hey, you didn't happen to watch _Psycology through the Ages _on discovery channel last night, did you?" He poked. I gave him a single raised eyebrow.

"I'll take that as a no." Came his conclusion. "Well, anyway, they had this theory that the more of the dream you remember, the more important to the mind it is. For example, a dream about eating at a resturaunt would be gone like that," he snapped his fingers for effect, "While a dream where your cat dies or something real happy, sad, scary or bad happens, it would be more of a significant thing to your mind, so you would remember that more than the, y'know, resturaunt thing." That was atually pretty interesting.

"Cool. You know, I had a pretty darn strange dream a while ago," I said, trying to keep the conversation reasonably non-nerdy.

"Oh? When was that?" He sounded actually interesting. That was unusual. No-one usually wanted to hear about my dreams. But then, the people I talked to about it had heard the whole 'strange, realistic dream' thing before.

"Well, I was down at the park, near the creek, and I fell asleep against a tree. And I had this strange dream that-" I cut myself off, suddenly remembering that Hoagie was _in_ the dream. I couldn't tell him that! God, I'd be marked as a weirdo for the rest of the time he knew me! I decided to give him the _edited _version of my dream.

"I was in this sort of, secret agency thing. But we- uh, _they _were all kids. It- it was strange, there was like, this _war_ going on between the kids and the adults, I mean... it was just strange. That's all I can say, it was strange."

He frowned in concentration, then looked to me. His face bore an espression of deep thought and what looked like slight concern. Then, he opened his mouth and simply asked;

"Do you know _why_ you had this dream?"

"Nooo," I replied slowly, though I thought the answer obvious.

"No, you've got to really think about it. Is there anything in your past that could be linked to I dunno, secrets or serious tasks of some kind, any opposition you may have had to adults, or a trauma you may have gone through as a child?" This guy should be able to skip high school outright and just take a job as a psycologist. But there was one flaw to his diagnosis.

"But that's the thing! I don't _remember _anything from before my thirteenth birthday," I admitted, searching his face to find whether he thought it unusual or not. His reply surprised me.

"Hm, that's interesting. I have the same problem," He frowns, as if going through all the possible explanations for this.

He opened his mouth to speak again, but the first bell cut him off, signalling five minutes until the start of school. He waited for the few seconds it took to quiet down. In that time, I was able to take a closer look at the look on his face; it wasn't the sort of 'your socks have disappeared too?' look, it was more of a 'we need to figure this out' 'this means buisiness' look. In that moment, I saw something on the boy's face that I had never seen before. Instead of the awkward, sort of nerdy guy he usually was, I saw someone who was focussed and determined and... kinda _hot._ It as a new look for him.

It suited him.

"It's strange, that we don't remember. But I bet there's a logical explanation for it," he stated, brow still creased in thought.

Kuki walked through the door at that moment, her step bordering on a skip and her everpresent smile still sitting comfortably on her face.

"Hey guys! Watcha talking about?" She greeted. Hoagie simply answered with; "Exploring the diagnostics for a psycologic abnormality we both possess." Kuki's smile faded slightly and was replaced by a cunfused frown and a tilted head.

"He means we were talkin' about how neither of us can remember before we turned thirteen."

"Oh. Wait, what? You-y-me too!" She stuttered, eyes wide with disbelief.

"That's weird." My eyes drifted down to the table for a second.

Now it was Nigel's turn to enter, and inquire as to where we were in the conversation. This time though, he received the abbreiviated answer 'something we found out all have.' When he wanted to know what that thing might be, we began to answer, but were once again cut off by the schoolbell. And the teacher.

"Okay, kids. Usually, I would give you a long-winded and pretty much worthless rant, but, I'm not in the mood today. Just go on with your assignments. If anyone needs me, I'll be in the staff room trying to bore myself to death with your reports from last month." Okay, this guy has issues. He pushed his way out the door, either not noticing or pretending not to notice Wally as he panted his way to the classroom, nearly missing a head-on collision with the glass window.

"Hey... guys. Sorry... I'm... late," he gasped, falling into a chair at the table we were sitting at.

"No problem. We haven't really gotten started yet," Hoagie replied, getting out a fresh piece of paper out of his folder.

Nigel then spoke up.

"So, how about we do a TV ad? We could get two of us to model some of the clothes and Hoagie could edit it all together and put some special effects in," he suggested. From the way he said all that, it sounded as if he'd been thinking about it since the last lesson.

"Yeah, that's cool," Wally agreed.

"But where would we film it? It would have to be somewhere where there weren't any buildings or anything, so it could look like ancient Rome," Kuki said.

Hoagie lit up, a lightglobe practically appearing above his head.

"Abby! We could use that creek place you told me about! It would be perfect! We could make it look like we were going down there to collect water from the creek!" He exclaimed. I almost blushed at his bright smile, but stopped, realising that the creek he was talking about was the same one that I had had the _dream_ near_._

"What creek? Abby you think you can show us?" Nigel asked. I had to show them. I couldn't just say 'no,' because then I would have to tell them why.

"Uh, yeah, I guess so," I answered after a few seconds.

!End Flashback!

And so, that brought me here, leading four other people through the bushes to the creekside reluctantly.

I can't wait to go home.

~(*)~

I cautiosly cast a left and right twice before heading out into the open. it was almost, done, all I had to do was plant the note for little Joey Beatles on his front door, and he would be in the bag as easy as taking candy from a baby, which happened to be one of my favourite passtimes.

I fished the note out from my bag along with a small roll of tape, then proceeding to attatch the note firmly to the wooden door, making sure to stick it low enough for it to be easily read by the brat. After that, I slunk off once more into the bushes, heading to where my genius olan would lead the boy unsuspmectingly. It was 2:50, the boy would be back in about forty minutes, so I decided to check in for a status update first.

Dialing the number quickly, I held the reciever up to my ear and waited impatiently for a response from the end. Finally, after a about half a minute, there was a sound from the other end.

"Dr. Colter. I trust the plan is running smoothly so far," it was less a friendly comment and more an 'it better be.'

"Yes. May I ask how things are doing over there?"

"Well, Doctor, they are going well. How long will it be before we are able to take them all easily?" Was his only question.

"Not long now. I will have to convert at least ten more of them here, and I will check in with the other teen units to give you a full analysis of their areas as well. All in all, we should be up to invasion point in less than a month, two months at the latest." Apparently, the overlord on the other end liked this.

"Very good, Dr. Colter. You have done well for a first timer in my buisiness. Very well, carry on then," came the one-toned reply.

"Yes, father."

**A/N: Cliffanger! Not much to say right now, but I will tell you two things;**

**I saw a number plate the other day that was actually FLYBOI. I thought of Hoagie as soon as I saw it!**

**There is a girl in my class that looks like a rainbow monkey. Seriously, she wears a bun every day that sticks up in a semicircle JUST LIKE a rainbow monkey's rainbow halo! Lol, I almost laugh whenever I think about it. Anyway, R&R! Thanks and bye for now!**

**-xoxo, Numbuh 25**


	11. Ch 10, Old Enemies

**A/N: Hey! Sorry for the late update/horrible chapter! But check this out, the holidays have just started, and I get SICK! That is SO UNFAIR! Anyways, read on!**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

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Chapter 10 – Old Enemies

"Children! Come in here at _once!_" Yelled Father, nearly losing control of his flames. How could his children let this happen? He puts them in charge of _one _thing, and they can't even do _that_ right.

"Y-yes, Father?" The five delightfuls poked their heads around the corner of the doorframe, too wary of their own safety to give him a bigger target.

"I have a question for you, my children," Father says in a slightly lower voice. Then, without waiting for an answer, he continued.

"Where are the tubes of Z2A that I left in my safe?" He boomed. The children looked bewildered, but also a little confused.

"We thought it was still _in _the safe... isn't it, Father?" They said in unison.

"Well, why don't you go and _check_ then!" Came the enraged reply. The delightfuls opened their mouths to speak again, eyeing the corridor that lead to Father's highest security safe but were once again cut off.

"It isn't there, you incompetent fools! _Why _isn't it there?"

Now, the five teenagers' faces changed from nervous anticipation to annoyance, complete with hands on hips.

"Well, _we _don't know! We didn't give the code to anyone! If someone found it out, it was probably from one of those blabbermouth Ice-cream men of yours!"

An idea came to Father's mind. He should have known. Looking back, it was obvious.

"Your school is next to the Junior high school, isn't it, children?" He questioned.

"Well, yes Father, but I don't see what that has to do with anything," they chorused. Again, they were ignored.

"And there are Kids Next Door agents at that Middle school, correct?"

"If you think that we just _gave away_ the code..." the Delightfuls began, trailing off at the end as they realised that any threats to the villain before them would only be copied and tripled.

"Did you ever discuss the code with any of your little friends at school?" Came the next inquiry in Father's investigation.

"Uh, yes. We did bring it up with some of the teen agents. But they are sworn to secrecy over anything to do with this project."

"No! You were being spyed on by those infernal Kids Next Door! Because of your blabbermouthing, they just waltzed up to the safe and took the carton from right under our noses!" Now Father actually _did _lose control of his flames, lighting up in fury with an accusing finger pointed in the Delightful Children's direction.

"We are sorry, we will be more careful in future, we promise," they said humbly in their obedient tone. Father just continued to scowl in their direction.

"Enough of your pathetic apologising. Off with you, I need to figure out how to make up for this setback. Thanks to you, the KN-Delinquents may be able to figure out what we are doing to them."

With that, the group left Father's office, muttering under their breath, now more ill-tempered than usual.

~(*)~

"Treehouse! Treehouse! This is numbuh 676, do you copy?"

...

"Come in, treehouse! I repeat, _do you copy?"_

...

"Numbuh 676? Is that you?" The voice crackled, the connection somehow unstable despite how close they were.

"Numbuh 678! What's happening over there? Are you okay?" Voices on both ends of the reciever grew increasingly loud and desperate.

"We are under attack! It's...we've never seen them before, but they're in the process of hacking our motherboard! You _have _to get over here _now!_"

"I'll-" There was uncertainty in her tone before she found it in herself to pull together. "-I'll be there in five minutes. Hang in there numbuh 678!"

Then, the connection faltered altogether, and numbuh 676 was left to think up a way to get out of the High School hallway and back to the treehouse in five minutes.

"Okay, Amanda. Keep calm. In, out, in, out," she coaxed, preparing to leave her stakeout position behind a trashcan. "It's not as if there are actually _people _out here."

_Brrring... Brrring..._

"_Urrgh!"_

Doors flew open and teens practically sprinted out of the classroom, some even shoving past others to get the best position at the lockers and avoid being blocked by another student. Numbuh 676 smiled inwardly.

_Some things never change._

Breathing in deeply one final time, Amanda slipped through the gap between the rubbish bin and the wall.

_Ready..._

A slow cautious step out of the cramped position.

_Steady..._

Lowering down and setting her eyes on the main door.

_GO!_

Taking off at top speed, numbuh 676 dodges her way around the teenagers in the corridor. Some are bewildered, others are simply too consumed with texting to do anything but look up, throw a quick glace left and right and continue what they were doing.

Nearing the door, the hideaway agent lets her guard drop, only to run head-on into a raven-haired girl in a red hat.

"Woah, woah woah. Slow down kiddo. Where are you goin'?" She said, taking a gentle hold on each of Amanda's shoulders to calm her down.

"I... I...-" Amanda struggled to think up an alibi for why an eleven year-old sixth grader was doing in the tenth grade hallway, a whole street away from the middle school.

"I was lost," she fibbed. trying her best to look embarressed. The teen above her smiled.

"Aw, well then, I'll show you the way back. Just follow me," se waved her hand in the direction of the door, and numbuh 676 followed obediently. Once the two were out the school gate, the older girl gave the younger directions on how to get to the sixth grade block, though Amanda didn't need any help at all. She just smiled and thanked her cutely, giving an exasperated sigh and thinking to herself; _Finally!_

Bidding a mental good riddance to the other girl (it wasn't that she didn't like her, but that teen had cost her valuable minutes) she continued her race on foot to her sector's treehouse. Now, she was on the edge of tears. Her teammates were probably lying on the floor, tied up in bundles of rope by now, and their only hope had been caught up and helped against her will by a slightly familiar looking teenager.

Within minutes, Amanda was at the treehouse. It looked strangely normal, but every KND operative knew that looks can be extremely deceiving.

She swung her backpack off one shoulder unzipped it and pulled out her GRAPPLER.

Kids Next Door: GRAPPLER

Great

Rope

Assists

Pulling

People

Legnths

Ensuring

Rescue

Amanda bit her lip, pulling the trigger with her eyes shut tight. The rope caught on the ledge of the outside deck on the highest level of the treehouse. Numbuh 676 gave the end a yank, making sure it would hold her full weight. Swallowing her fear, she flicked the switch marked 'Retract' and held on for dear life as she was hoisted up to the safety rail.

Once inside, Amanda saw only the remains of a battlefeild, and not the actual battle that she expected. Her sector -all four of them- were slumped either against a wall or on the ground. Luckily, none of them seemed hurt to badly.

"Numbuh 676! You're- you're a bit late," numbuh 678, the boy from the call for help, said comically. She ran over to him and the others, apologising over and over.

"Amanda, please stop! You don't have to say sorry, it's okay," numbuh 675 said, getting up slowly. It was then that Amanda noticed something, or rather, something that wasn't there.

"Where's Simon?" She asked suddenly, throwing her eyes left to right repeatedly.

"Relax. Numbuh 679 is fine. In fact, he saved us!"

"Really?"

"Ye-ah..." Came the stuttering and unmistakable voice, from somewhere near the computer.

"What? Simon, are you there?"

"You betcha. Just, it'll take a while for me to be _all _here," he said, emerging from _inside _the main computer.

"How...?" Amanda was lost for words.

"I had just finished setting up our mega-safe security system lock on the motherboard, and... well, the teens didn't like that very much."

Numbuh 676 gasped, and the rest of her team smirked ever so slightly.

"So, how did _you _go? Better than us, I hope," numbuh 680 mused.

"Well, I got the code to Father's safe, but that's nothing," Amanda said casually.

"Really? That's awesome! We have to go _now!_" Burst Numbuh 678, immediately recovering and jumping to his feet.

~(*)~

"Hey, Abby! How are you? Having a good day?" Kuki beamed at me as I sat down at the bench opposite her.

"I'm doin' just fine, thanks Kuki," I replied, "but the strangest thing happened to me just then. I was walking to my locker when this _kid _bumped into me!" I emphasised on the word 'kid' not because I disliked kids, but to highlight the fact that there was a child under the age of fourteen in a high school.

"Really? Did you find out what they were there for?" Kuki's eyes widened. It wasn't _extremely _shocking, but then, in Kuki's eyes, everything seemed to be about ten times more interesting.

"She said she was lost, but I'm not so sure."

"Why?"

"Think about it, it was hardly seconds after the lunch bell, for both the Middle school _and _our school, and what kind of kid could 'wander' that far away from their classroom in that amount of time without knowing what they're doing?" I said, a frown of deep thought forming on my features. What would a kid want in a High school? Nothing came to mind, and I'd been trying to figure it out since the startled redheaded girl had collided with me in the first place.

"Hm. There's something strange about that," Kuki announced, tapping a finger against her chin.

"I know! I showed her back to the sixth grade block, but she looked as if she- didn't _want _to go back."

"Well, who _wants _to go to school?" Kuki retalliated.

"Yeah, I guess not. But still, if you're a lost kid, wouln't you want to get back to any place you recognise? Even if it _is _school." The logic just didn't add up.

"So, did she look like the kind that would skip school?" Kuki asked, poking her lunch with a plastic fork.

"No, not at all! She seemed distracted. Y'know, like she was worrying about a friend or something. I had to say everything twice just to get her to respond," I pressed. Something was off, just not normal about all this, and I wanted to find out what it was.

"Peer pressure?" Kuki looked up from her plate.

"What?"

"Did she look like she was under the pump about something?" She inquired.

"Come to think of it, she kind of did," I said, my brow creasing further.

"Well, maybe she was bullied into skipping school." That was actually a very possible explanation.

"Kuki, that is one of the smartest things you have ever come up with," I said sincerely. She just smiled back and picked up another spoonful of yogurt.

"I liked that girl. She reminded me of someone. But for the life of me I can't figure out who."

_Or what._

**A/N:** **Weird and totally off topic, I know. I'm just happy I got to update without being horribly late.**

**~Open Dramatic Rant Thingy~**

****Clears throat****

**I have an announcement to make; as of exactly today, I only have a month of childhood left. As of the 3rd of August, I would no longer be able to be a Kids Next Door operative if the agency exsisted. 31 days left of being able to say; 'I'm still a kid!' when people expect me to do things I can't.**

**Goodbye childhood! **Falls to the ground dramatically****

**That is all.**

**~Close Dramatic Rant Thingy~**


	12. Ch 11, Lazer Tag and Revenge

**A/N: Hey! I know the last chapter sucked, so, now I bring you my apology chapter! I made it to fifteen pages! YAY! Hope you don't hate me any more after this. READ ON, I am very proud of this one.**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 11 – Lazer Tag and Revenge

Abby was acting weird that day. At the creek. She wasn't herself, not the cool and collected girl that never looked out of her depth. It was like something was watching her, like she was about to slip up somehow. I don't know if of the others; Kuki, Wally or Hoagie, seemed to notice, but I certainly did. Maybe that was why I had that feeling near the creek. A feeling of subtle and faint... _guilt _almost. Not like I'd done something wrong, but like I was doing wrong by someone else.

"So, what were we planning to do here again?" She'd asked, surveying the area as if something there may have caused us harm. In heinsight, that was my first clue.

"To film you three-" Hoagie waggled his finger between Abby, Kuki and Wally- "pretentding to collet water from the creek."

The blondie raised an eyebrow.

"Exscuse me? I thought it was just the _girls _doing this cruddy water thing." His hands came out in front of him, pleading his case alongside him. Hoagie smiled deviously and shook his head with a simple 'huh-uh.'

"Well, why can't _you _do it?"

"Do you know how to use a 10.2 megapixel high definition 5-Axel IS camcorder?" He questioned, though the tone of his voice suggested he knew the answer. In return, a now very irritated Wally kicked his foot on the ground and mumble something inaudible.

So the shooting went on, with Hoagie weilding the camera like a professional, me as 'artistic director' (Hoagie can have his commercial-shooting fantasy if he wants. Basically, I was just in charge of anything that didn't come under the title 'actor' or 'cameraman.' That meant setting, direction, props and action. Go me), and as we progressed, Abby's strange behaviour became more and more apparent to me. She would miss her cue simply because she was looking off somewhere where there was nothing at all of interest, and struggle to remain alert to the reason we were at the spot in the first place. She would tune out if we were discussing something, whether it had to do with the projeect or not, and something would happen to her, like she was dreaming while she was awake. Expressions would form on her face, stay for a while, seconds, minutes, the time varied, but then, it would just change. Like she was having an actual conversation with herself. It unsettled me to no end.

"Nigel?" Kuki asked, gently tapping my shoulder from in front, "You alright there?"

I blinked a few times to clear any thoughts on the 'Abby's nerves' subject and looked back to Kuki.

"Yeah. Fine."

~(*)~

By 6pm I could have been back home, having finished quite a good amount of the video. But I still had over another half-hour until dinner, so I called mum and told her I'd be home at about 6:30, and decided to go for a walk. After all, what better thing did I have to do?

Saying a goodbye to the others, I pushed my way out of the bushes, using my hands to sheild my eyes from the oncoming head-high branched of assorted green.

The park was on the verge of sunset, the air tinged a slightly darker shade than daylight. And with that dark came the beginnings of a biting chill. I balled my hands in my pockets, enjoying the cool feeling on my face as I walked. Birds chirruped in the trees as if taking it upon themselves to tell the sun to set. A squirrel peeped out from a thick tuft of leaves and sniffed the air, in that 'never let your guard down' way. I liked that. Being alert and switched on at all times was the one sure fire way to stay ahead. Though what I may want to stay ahead in I don't know.

Scuffing my toes as I strolled, I gazed around at everything inside the park's border, then decided that it was all things that I'd seen before, and so left to walk some of streets around the neighbourhood.

I'd been walking the well-worn sidewalk for about ten minutes when I saw her. She was sitting on a wooden fence, looking out at what would be a sunset in about another twenty minutes. She was facing away from me, her blonde hair being tugged away from her as if attempting to make an escape. I wondered if I should say something, but my feet wanted to keep walking. But, as if the world was telling me that I _had _to talk to her, I stepped on a twig, sending an echoing '_crick' _through the quiet back street.

Her hands remained where they were on the fence for balance, but her head whipped around quickly, as if she'd been disturbed from deep thought. I cursed myself mentally.

"Who's there! Oh. Nigel, is that you?" She asked, now swinging both legs over the shaky wooden fence and looking at me with a tilted head.

"Um, yeah. Yeah, it's me. So, uhm... what's happening?" I tried to be cool. In short; total failure.

"Just thinking. I like to watch the sun going down."

"Oh. That's... nice," I stumbled over my words, not sure of what to say to make this situation not-awkward. I was just sort of standing there, feeling like I should move but also stay put. She looked at me. I looked at her. She looked at me. I looked at her. Nothing changed but the time on my digital watch.

Then she finally broke the silence.

"You ever felt like something's waiting for you, like there's something you're meant to do?"

"You mean like when you forget to do your homework?" I suggested, unsure of the question.

"No. Something more than that. Like-" she sighed- "never mind. It's crazy anyway."

And with that, I forgot about the awkwardness and made my way over to the fence, jumping up next to her.

"Well, maybe it's nothing. We all get deja vu sometimes. It's just a sign of lack of sleep," I consoled, waving my hand around a bit in an 'it's no problem' way.

She looked unconvinced for a second, then changed the subject adruptly.

"How come you haven't joined any clubs or anything?" She asked, obviously having had enough of the previous topic.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Well, you've been at our school for almost three months now, and you haven't joined a single extra-curricular group. There are so many that would suit you," it was interesting that she'd noticed. I was also taken aback slightly by the fact that she knew me well enough to know what type of things I'd be interested in.

"I- well, I guess I just haven't found the right one to join yet," I stuttered. The truth was, there was no club that would want me. Football team; no way, for obvious reasons. Book club? Uh-uh, I liked reading, but not when I was forced into one book or kicked out. The idea of me joining the choir just made me crack up laughing. Nothing seemed to fit right.

"Well, how about lazer tag?" She asked. I perked up at that. Lazer tag could be fun.

"The school has a lazer tag team?"

"Yeah! It's really cool. There's a tournament on tomorrow if you want to come watch. It's too late to sign up though, but you can play in the next one if you want," she said hopefully. The idea turned over in my head for a few seconds.

"Sure, I'll come. Sounds like fun."

She smiled. And I smiled back.

~(*)~

Kuki made her way down the sidewalk to the lazer tag place. You could almost call it a warehouse, it was big enough. There were three levels, and many secret ramps and staircases that lead between them. There were bridges that covered the gaps between platforms on the higher levels, and metal grate floors that made everything seem just a little bit less safe. It wasn't a place that anyone who knew Kuki would predict she would be on a Saturday afternoon, but even so, there she was. Heaving open the weighty steel door, she spotted her friends slash teammates in the corner. Plus Nigel, who she wasn't expecting to see.

"Hey guys?" Said Kuki, giving them a happy wave. "What's the matter?" She added upon seeing the five others' disappointed faces.

"Tournament's cancelled," Fanny mumbled, looking up slowly for Kuki's reaction.

"What? Why? What happened?"

"There was a malfunction in the electrical system and now all the registrations are gone. As well as the scoreboard, the lighting in the warehouse and the entire system as well as the lazer packs," Hoagie listed on his fingers, before taking a long sip from a soda bottle.

"Aw! I've been waiting all _week _for this! It was gonna be so much fun!" Kuki whined.

"Ah know! Ah was all set ta pulverise everyone out there!" Said Wally.

"Hang on, guys. If we can't _compete _today, that doesn't mean we can't get some practice," Abby pointed out. Rachel merely raised her eyebrows at her.  
"And how do you suppose we do that when the entire lazer tag facility is out of service?"

"Well, there's a Dark Zone up at the Mall, isn't there?" Abby suggested, holding out her hands.  
"Yeah! That's a great idea!" Kuki cried.

"That way I could actually play," Nigel chimed.

"Well, let's go then."

When the group arrived at the Centro Mall, making their way up to the counter and looking around, one of the first things they saw was another group of teens, five in all, who seemed familiar in a 'not this guy again' way.

"Ace? What are you guys doing 'ere?" Wally mused, trying not to sound annoyed by his presence. This was meant to be time with some people he might be able to call real friends, not some stupid football team I pretended to like.

"Just havin' some fun with the guys. We would've asked you but, uh, this place only takes teams of five and we thought you'd be, mm, packing." Well, while Rachel put their team of _six_down for the next session, Wally decided to keep to himself the fact that he wasn't leaving for another two months, three weeks and four days. Not that anyone was counting.

"Whateva, _mate_."

"Hey, I'm not looking for a fight, man," Ace said, his voice dripping in arrogance.

"Really? There's a sentence that's never bin' said _here _before." Wally had snapped. He'd had enough of this idiot pretending that he was perfect. People only liked him because he could throw a ball (quite horribly, at that) without messing up his hair.

"What is up with you, Beatles? Why are you acting so stupid?"

"Maybe Ah'm just sick of hearin' about how _close _ya were to taking Kuki out, and how she'll _so _say yes next time!"

"You're jealous," Ace spat, aggrivated that someone had challenged his dominance and insulted him so openly.

"Jealous? Of _you_? Why would I want to be anything like _you? _The only thing you're good at is pretending you don't _suck _at everything else."

"This is the maddest I've seen him," Hoagie mumbled to Abby, not taking his eyes off the scene unfolding in front of him.

"No kidding," Abby agreed.

Ace was physically tensing, and his crew seemed unsettled that someone had managed to get to their leader, and they seemed unsure of how to react.

"That right, Beatles? Well, let's see if your theory holds up on the battlefield," Ace taunted, jerking a head in the direction of the door leading into the course.

"Sure, if ya don't mind bein' left there when tha game's ova." And with that, Wally turned on his sneakered heel and resumed talking to us as if nothing had happened.

Ten minutes later, at 2:15 when the session was about to start, the six miss-matched teens were sitting at one of the neon-lined tables on six neon seats, laughing and joking about Wally's apparent 'show-down' with Ace.

"Laugh all ya want, Ace's still gonna get crushed," Wally said matter-of-factly.

"Of course he is, Wally. It's just the idea of him _being _crushed that's making us laugh," Rachel smirked, while everyone else tried in vain to mask their giggles.

"Yeah, Ah guess it is pretty funny."

A boy only slightly older than them entered through the door to the field, clearing his throat in an important way.

"Excuse me, can the 2:15 group please follow me now, the 2:15 group."

Ace's group, along with Wally, Abby, Kuki, Hoagie, Nigel, Fanny and Rachel's group, as well as some unidentified strangers, filed in after the group leader, eager to get out onto the battlefield and kick some serious butt via lazer.

Suiting up felt strange to a number of the rag-tag team, awkwardly natural and strangely normal at the same time. Clipping their packs on drifted in and out of not important to important, not important, important. Neither admitted this to the others, but they felt like they all had just become, through the cancelling of a lazer tag tournament, almost instantly friends, unlike their own 'friends;' Wally with the football team, Hoagie with the AV club, they were all just friends you were expected to have because of who you were and what you did. This felt more like being friends by choice, not by status quo. And it was a nice change to know that they still had some power over their social lives.

Ace pushed past Wally on the way into the dim-lit room, giving him the predictable delberate shove in the shoulder by way of an attempted 'back off' gesture. Wally's fists balled, and he turned his gaze up to the ceiling, trying to remember the quickest way to the top level. That way he'd have a good shot at everyone under him, and everyone above him would be too scared to come any closer than thirty feet.

"Ready players?" Started a loud computer-controlled voice, "Three, two, one."

Abby settled into her position, ready to take thesse kids by storm from a high-up, safe and easily escapable shooting point.

Kuki hid behind a post, hands on her lazer and waiting patiently and eagerly for the game to start.

Fanny crouched behind a hip-high wall, in front of which another player stood oblivious to the fact that as soon as the buzzer rang, they would be shot out of the game.

Hoagie was by their team's base, preparing himself to guard it from anyone and everyone who tried to shoot at it.

Nigel was at the door, in plain sight, not caring that anyone could see him. He was sure he'd hit them first.

Rachel stood in the direct middle of a bridge on the top floor, assessing the competition and nodding to herself.

"Play." The robo-voice commanded, and the field sprung to life. Players jumped out from behind, in between and even under things, and a few people, spurred on by the computer-controlled gamemaster, fired their first shot within the first three seconds.

Abby wasn't one of those people. Se waited the few seconds it took for the game to really get started, before assessing the situation and the people she could hit from her little hole in the wall. She targeted on a stranger, giving herself a little smirk before letting her finger slide back on the trigger. There was a _pew _sound and the lazer fired, and in the blink of an eye, the victim's lit-up pack was switched off.

_Ha-ha._

"Fanny!" Kuki whisper-shouted across a metal grated area, to where her friend was standing back against the wall as if it was the only thing that would keep her on her feet.

She jerked her head around to Kuki, taking a moment to realise that she posed no threat, before putting her finger to her mouth and giving her a '_shush' _sound. Kuki mouthed an 'okay' and stepped in next to Fanny.

Fanny looked back to her, pointing around the corner then holding up four fingers to indicate how many people were there.

Leaning further back and lowering into a ready position, Kuki then whispered; "now?" to which Fanny shook her head.

"What do you think Beatles was doing back there?" Came someone's voice from around the bend.

"Dunno, but it was a stupid thing to do. Ace'll talk to the coach, make up some story about how '_Wally did this,' _or '_His grades are dropping.' _I'd say he's got about a week left on the team," said another. There was the sound of two others sniggering at the last comment. At this, both Kuki and Fanny frowned, mouths dropping open.

"_What?" _Fanny mouthed, looking to Kuki for any answer she might have had. Kuki merely shrugged, looking just as bewildered, maybe more so, than the former.

Fanny, now appearing angry instead of shocked, gave a downward shake of her head, as if she was saying _'That does it. I have heard enough,' _And gave Kuki three fingers up, counting down on them.

After putting down her last finger, Fanny broke the silence they had been keeping up and yelled, "GO!"

Her and Kuki burst out from the corner, and the four of Ace's crew jumped back in surprise. The two girls fired their lazers wildly, and each scored two direct hits each. And as the now defeated bunch of football players stood, eyes wide and packs devoid of colour, Kuki and Fanny both gave the barrels of their guns a western-style blow, smirking dominantly down at the four of them, before running off in their own directions once again, leaving the strange pairing of angry redhead and bubbly raven hair with their opponents.

Rachel had been playing for a little under twenty minutes, and already she was into battle-mode. So far she had hit five kids completely unaware, ten kids who were all _too _aware, and also squished in a couple of commando rolls in the middle, just for the heck of it.

Rachel loved the thrill of battle. She felt like it was just too _much _fun to do this; ambush, protect, feel like you were invincible.

She was just thinking about that as she started her way down a long ramp to the lower floor, making sure to keep low.

"Hoagie! You found our base already? It's like a labaryinth in here, how did you manage that?" Rachel asked, desending the remainder of the ramp she was on and entering the three-sided box that housed the flashing red light that was their base. If a person from an opposing team hit that too many times, they'd all go down.

"I've been here before. I have a good memory," Hoagie replied simply, not taking his eyes off the small rectangle of metal grate that let him see out of the almost enclosed area. So far, no-one had spotted him, and that was how he wanted it to stay.

"Well done soldier, back luck they didn't do the tournament here," Rachel said jokingly. To be honest, when she first saw Hoagie, she didn't think of him as much of a lazer tagger, but that changed the second she saw him out on the field. He was a great strategist, and always knew exactly where to position himself and the people around him to stage the perfect ambush. Not to mention he could hit a person on the back target of their packs from almost halfway across the feild, if he was given the time to aim. Maybe all those video games payed off when it came to hitting people with lights.

"Okay, so how many points are you on so far?" Hoagie inquired, trying to keep up a friendly conversation.

Rachel checked the small screen on her lazer. "Uh, one thousand, two hundred and twelve." Hoagie raised his eyebrows, impressed.

"Nice. I only have 1180, but I managed to remember where the green base was," the boy said in response.

"And did you destroy it?" Rachel pushed, though it was an obvious question. Hoagie half rolled his eyes.

"Well, have you _seen _any green packs running around here in the past ten minutes?" 

Nigel was, as some would call, an arrogant player. He preferred to call it 'cutting out all the wait.' Could you blame him if he chose going out alone and giving his best shot straight off the box instead of hiding and waiting for someone to find _him? _Anyway, his method worked. For him, anyway. He had only been hit twice, temporary imparments both times, and he himself had taken down six of the yellow team in one place. He didn't call himself the hero, he didn't think that he was the best player out there, no. He wasn't that kind of person, though at first glance, his actions may make him appear so. He just liked to give it his all in one burst, because in his opinion, the longer you stretched it out, the weaker you were in the long shot. This was a measure of your highest point, not how long you could last.

Maybe this Lazer tag team was a good idea after all.

Lifting himself back into view, Wally surveyed the area, and the players in range. He could see three out of his five comnrades. Kuki skipped in and out of the obstacles, somehow missing every single lazer fired her way. Fanny kept popping up from her hiding place, shooting at some poor person looking the other way, and then ducking back down. Wally struggled not to laugh out loud at the sight of it.

Nigel, in contrast, took no precautions in staying out of sight; he simply walked through the passages and openings and hit everyone who thought that it was unfair.

But then, Wally spotted who he was looking for.

Ace was standing with his foot up on the wall, pretending he was too cool to get hit. _Ah've had about enough of __him__._

Scowling down at the guy he'd been putting up with for so long, Wally pulled the target lense on his gun up to his eye, flexing his fingers, ready to pull the trigger. But before he could do so, some stupid guy in a yellow pack ran past just in front of him, causing the thing he wanted to hit _so _badly with a lazer to run off after him.

_Ok, if he won't come to me, I'll come to him._

Rising out of his hiding place, Wally took to his feet and turned the corner to the nearest staircase leading down from the top level. He shot between three and five others on the way down (he wasn't sure of the exact number; he wasn't really paying attention) and by the time he jumped from the third step to the bottom, he was too far into the zone to go back.

He jumped over obstacles, slipped through gaps in between walls, he did anything in his power to get to that jerk. After about a minute of random running, jumping and ducking, he didn't even know if he was going in Ace's direction anymore. Stopping for a moment to get his bearings, Wally heard muffled footsteps coming from... directly below him. Turning his gaze downward, Wally saw, through another metal grate floor, Ace, who had a look of utterly fake fearlessness plastered on his face.

_Ah'm gonna enjoy this._

Wally readied his gun, aiming straight down, straight for the back of Ace's pack. Three hundred added to his score, Ace out of the game until it was over, an bragging rights from that moment on.

"_You're mine now, Kidd," _Wally mumbled to no-one in particular. But just as his finger began sliding back on the trigger, the lights switched on one by one, and a mechanical voice proclaimed;

"Game over. Please exit the course."

Wally dropped to his knees, looking up to the roof or the highest point he could see, shaking his hands as if they were in invisible shackles, and mouthed silently over and over;

"WHY?"

**A/N: Yeah, I am pretty happy with myself after that chapter. Boy, I'd look like an idiot if you guys didn't! (Oh, gosh, now I'm really worried)**

**Okay, so one more week of holiday left, then I have to get through term three. So sorry, another 15 page chapter is not likely. Not impossible, but not likely. URGH! But, I have some things I want to tell you;**

**-I e-mailed Jana Oliver, my favourite author, and SHE REPLIED! SHE SAID SHE LIKED MY WRITING! I AM OVER THE MOON AND BACK AT THAT! THAT'S WHY I AM TYPING IN CAPITALS WITH A LOT OF EXCAMATION MARKS!**

**-I may be going to Sydney to stay with my grandparents and see the rest of my family up there! I have a big family. There are 17 people here in Melbourne, and more than that in New South Wales. So yeah, dunno why I just said all that. You probably just didn't read any of it. **

**...**

**I don't care! My favourite author likes my writing!**

**-Numbuh 25 out**

**(And probably being effected by five nights in a row with a bedtime later than 1AM. Ah, holidays!)**


	13. Ch 12, Unexpected

**A/N: Last day of holidays, NOOO! Oh well, only ten weeks until term three holidays!**

**Disclaimer: (about time one of these showed up) I do not own Kids Next Door. All of the characters, aside from ones not featured in the original show are owned by Mr. Warburton and Cartoon Network.**

**P.S. Do not trust any of the scientific details in this chapter. You will probably be able to tell, but they are all fake. Okay, this is a pretty interesting chapter. But, why should I tell you about it when you can read for yourself? Go ahead!**

Chapter 12 – Unexpected

"Joel! Mia! Get over here! We need to focus," Cree hissed to her friends and accomplices. They were on hands and knees, crawling through the airvents in an enemy location.

Sometimes Cree thought she was too old to still be working as a spy for adult villains. She was twenty-two; almost old enough to be an adult villain herself, and yet here she was with her boyfriend and another, younger teen ninja who had potential despite being four years behind the two she was with.

"Cree, you may want to take a look at this," the youngest one said, jerking a thumb in the direction of a vent in the side of the airway.

"What is it _now, _Mia?" Not that she had been a pain or anything so far today. Cree just liked to make sure that she was the one people were scared into respecting, and not the one who was forced into respecting another. She wasn't the kind of person to come in second place when she could do something about it.

Crawling over to where the two others were staring intently at something in the room below, Cree took a look for herself.

"What? Isn't that the stuff that crazy scientist guy was using to make the kids go weird?" Cree found herself overlooking a room, a laboratory probably, containing five or six children in pure white lab coats (save for maybe a few scorch marks) holding a few test tubes of pale yellowish liquid up to the light, squinting in concentration.

"Looks like it," Joel confirmed. Pulling out a high-tech pair of binoculars, he scanned both the children and the concoctions they were studying.

"The code of whatever that stuff is definitely matches chemical Z2A. I think somehow the kids have gotten their hands on it," he reported. Cree scowled, in both anger and in thought. If the KND hada managed to take some of the chemical this entire project was balanced upon, they were only a step closer to figuring them out completely. Giving a frustrated '_hmm,' _Cree spoke again;

"We may have underestimated those brats."

"I suggest we listen in on a bit of their conversation," Mia began, "It would tell us how much they know, and if there's any way we could steal whatever amount of Z2A they have back."

Giving her a once over and considering her idea, Cree nodded slowly.

"Huh. I like the way you think, kid. It was a good thing you decided to ditch those dorks all those years ago." She smirked. As did the eighteen year-old she was talking to.

Though inside, Mia was thinking about what it would have been like had she stayed with the Kids Next Door. If she hadn't given away the Code Module. If she hadn't betrayed her newfound friends. If she had fought instead of fleeing. If she had stayed numbuh 12 until the bitter end.

But then, she had always liked to be on the winning side. And as far as _she _knew, the teens were the winning side right now. Let them catch her, let them decomission her; she had alreay given everything she knew to her fellow teens. And there was no way those brats could make a comeback now; it was just a matter of time before they were all on the teens' side.

"Mia, we'll need your sound-magnifier to hear what's going on down there," Joel brought her back to alert.

"Oh, yes, of course," she said, bending back to reach her backpack in the cramped space she was in. She pulled out an object roughly the size of shoebox, or slightly smaller, with buttons and knobs on the side and what looked like a tiny megaphone on the end. But even with its small size, the megaphone had ten times the power of a standard stage microphone. Flicking the 'on' switch and pushing a button marked 'above,' Mia fiddled with the volume knob until the conversation of the children below them came into focus.

"So, if it reacts with the sodium chloride and Rioten peroxide solution and creates a _negative _charge, we can then assume that it contains Hydrogen ionide and Omniscius." Came the voice of one of the older kids, as two others watched on intently.

"Woah! Uhm, Numbuh 5687? Wha-wh-what is that?"

The operative dropped his spontanious science lesson and jogged over to another group's bench. Another test tube of the 'Z2A' chemical was boiling in a stand over a bunsen burner. However, as the solution began to steam, the lemon-coloured gas was drifting towards the two who were tending to it.

Back in the air vents, Joel, Mia and Cree were all bewildered by what was happening underneath them. It was like watching a suspence movie. Live. Cree lowered her eyebrows, Mia leaned in a little, as if making sure that what she was seeing was actually real, and Joel simply stared, wanting to kow what would happen next.

"What the heck?" Cried the older child, taking an involuntary half-step back. "That is _not _normal. Okay, this is an unstable situation. Numbuhs 1090 and 1092, I suggest you do anything you have to to avoid coming in contact with that cloud."

"You don't have to tell _me _twice!" Said a child on one of the split ends of the snake-like trail of steam, almost stumbling over a cardboard box in his effort to back further away from the steadily-flowing mid-air stream.

Meanwhile, another kid had switched off the gas release pipe that gave the bunsen burner its feul. The flame went out, but the test tube was still bubbling and boiling.

"It'll take at least ten minutes for the chemical to completely cool down," she said, "is there any way we can speed that up?"

"I don't know." Numbuh 5687 said, brow creased in concern.

"How about we drop it in one of the ice baths in the freezer?" Another boy, making sure to stay well away from the yellow haze spoke up.

"I don't care what you have to do, just get it to stop chasing me!" Yelled the other boy being followed. Numbuh 5687 considered this, all the while the numbuhs 1090 and 1092 were given no relief from the persuit of chemical Z2A.

"OK, numbuh 89.12, grab an ice bucket from the freezer. Actually, make it the tin of liquid Nitrogen in the corner, if you can manage. Numbuh 149, I need a wire test tube holder, _STAT!"_

The girl who had turned off the bunsen burner scurried off towards a huge metal door marked 'Super-freezing refridginator' while the smaller boy practically dove into a cupboard off to the left.

"1090, 1092. How are you guys doing?" He asked, turning back around to face the two boys.

"Just peachy!" The one on the left, 1090, said nervously.

"Never better!" Numbuh 1092 chided, trying to juggle the tasks of walking backwards without falling and keeping one eye on the gas.

"Glad to hear it," Numbuh 5687 said, taking note of their sarcasm but ignoring it altogether.

Three minutes later, the supplied were gathered; a huge canister with a heavy, secure lid, and a small wire figure. It had a triangular gap in the middle, and one long spoke coming off each point.

Numbuh 89.12 had on some thick oven mitt-like hand-protectors to sheild her skin from the intense, extreme cold of the Liquid Nitrogen, and was in the process of carefully opening the lid to the container of liquid Nitrogen. Once opened, the substance produced a thick white fog that rivaled the Z2A steam itself. Numbuh 149 handed the wire structure to numbuh 89.12, who then lowered it steadily down to the rim of the canister.

Numbuh 5687 nodded his approval to her progress, then proceeding to pick up the test tube of the offending chemical between the claws of a wooden clamp. Taking slow strides over to the tin, being careful to stay away from the side that the steam was being emitted from, he placed the tube into the wire rack.

The liquid Nitrogen hissed slightly at the tubes' impact, then kept on steaming as if nothing had happened at all.

In less than seconds, the tube of yellowy liquid stopped bubbling, and the cloud emerging from it dissapated instantly. Another half-second passed, and the liquid froze solid. As well as that, the toxic-looking steam targeted on numbuh 1090 and numbuh 1092 started to thin out, like someone had turned on a fan.

"Yes!" One of the boys yelled in relief, giving a small fist pump. The other simply smiled and sighed deeply.

Cree looked to the others she was with. Both bore the same expressions as her; confusion with a hint of disapointment. All three were apparently anxious to see what would have happened had the gas touched the either or both of the two operatives.

"That was strange." Numbuh 149, in his small and inward nature, seemed to come out of nowhere.

"It sure was," numbuh 5687 agreed, letting out a breath of air through clenched teeth. "And that wasn't any ordinary chemical reaction. This, my friends, this is a spacially aware chemical."

The others gasped.

"So, what does that mean for our research?" Numbuh 1090 piped up.

"It means that this chemical can target on one thing in a room. It knows where you are going. It can follow your moves. This is, most likely, the thing that has been turning our operatives against us." Numbuh 5687 looked at the frozen test tube in front of him, watching it as if it would suddenly leap out and attack all of them.

"But how?" Numbuh 89.12 asked, also intent on keeping the tube in sight. She was frowning, her arms somewhere between crossed and wrapped around herself. It was an obvious sign of nervousness to anyone who was not in the room.

I.E. Cree, Joel and Mia.

"No idea," Numbuh 5687 began, his face switching from concern to determination, "but I know that we are going to find out."

And with that, the kids set about clearing up everything that had been disrupted during the little episode, including everything that 1090 and 1092 knocked over while evading the gas.

"Wow." Joel whispered back up in the air vents. "That was... unexpected."

"Sure was," Mia agreed turning off the eavsdropping device and stashing it into her bag once again.

"Well, we know where they are in figuring us out. That's one thing," Cree pointed out. "Are you guys up for a stakeout tonight? We'll wait 'til they're gone, then take back what's ours."

Just then, numbuh 89.12 spoke up below, seemingly in answer to Cree's statement, in a voice so loud that it had no need for a microphone.

"Hey, numbuh 5687! When do we go home? It's taco night at my place!"

The head scientist in the room almost laughed, calling back to her, where she was almost opposite him in the room.

"It'll be a long night tonight, Gracie! We've got a lotta cleaning up to do after the _houdini brothers'_ less than clean getaway!" He shouted, purposefully directing a smirk to where the two boys stood. Numbuhs 1090 and 1092 blushed and chuckled nervously.

"I'm thinking... no on the stakeout," Joel announced, crawling off in the direction they had come from.

"Yeah. I got better things to do than watch some stupid kids playing janitor in a child-sized labratory," Mia followed after Joel.

"Urgh, fine, if you're not game enough. But as soon as we can get here again, we are _getting _those test tubes."

And with that, Cree crawled behind the two others to the outisde vent they'd entered through, her mind already at work on a method of breaking into the lab undetected.

~(*)~

Wally finally neared his house, pulling his car into the drive. The journey home could be a nightmare sometimes.

First, he had to endure the pushing, pulling and outright shoving of the students in the lockers surrounding his. Then, it was out to the carpark where countless others were trying (some more than others) to get to their cars, those too young to drive or at loss of a car simply attempting not to get run over as they made for the bus stop. The queue to get out of the carpark was always horrendously slow, because some jerk up the front couldn't talk to whoever it was they were talking to _before _they get into their car. On a good day, it would take you ten minutes to get out of there. Then, you were finally on the open roads, free from the claws of the beartrap that was school.

Walking up the path and approching the door, Wally was about to grab for the handle when he noticed something stuck to the door. A note.

He ripped off the little stickynote, attatched with a piece of tape, and read over it

_Joey,_

_I've gawn to the park to play footbal._

_It'd be kool if yu cood come 2, if yu wanted._

_I will be wateing fore yu there._

_-Wally_

Wally's grip on the note intensified, the not crumpled between his fingers. Someone was messing with his little bro, and he was going to find out who. Because he swore, if Ace was behind this, he was going to pummel that _jerk _into next week. Mess up his school life, Wally couldn't care less. Mess with his family, and you were going to pay the ultimate price.

His temper heated, Wally took off towards the park, thinking about what he was going to do to whoever was responsible for sending Joey on this wild goose chase.

Once there, Wally scanned left and right for his younger brother. When he saw nothing but other kids playing happily on the playground, he took off again, headed for the oval.

Joey was sitting on the grass when he arrived, panting heavily. The smaller version of himself looked disheartened, pulling out bunches of grass in an uninterested way. Wally felt a pang of sympathy. Joey was probably feeling like a loser, under the impression that his brother had tricked him.

"Joe! What's going on?" He called to him. Joey looked up, frowning in confusion.

Wally was about to continue, when he spotted something. There was a figure behind his brother, sneaking slightly out of the bushes. In an instant Wally knew that he was looking at the person who had left the fake note. But that wasn't important. What _was _important was the fact that his brother was about to be kidnapped if he didn't do something.

The man held something in his hand, like a compact dart shooter of some kind. And worse, it looked like it was loaded. Wally's heart quickened, his breath almost caught; this was actually happening. Some kind of criminal mastermind had played him and his brother like a drum. And now, it was all going down.

So, without warning, and much to Joey's bewilderment, Wally charged.

The figure jerked backwards on account of his unexpected appearance, but didn't show the tiniest hint of intimidation. Joey following his older brother's burning glare, found him too, and jumped to his feet.

"Well, what do we have here? The dynamic duo, I suppose?" The shadowed figure taunted, before emerging into the light. There stood a middle-aged man, beginning to bald on top, an evil smirk set on his hardened features.

Joey gasped as if in recognition, but remained silent.

"Who that _heck _are you, and what are ya doin' tryin' ta kidnap my little bro?" Wally demanded.

"That is none of your buisiness. I should be asking _you _the same question, _Wallaby_. What brings you here to disrupt the natural order of things?" Wally's heart skipped a beat. Somehow the fact that this guy knew his name was like giving him the advantage. He felt exposed, unprotected. But he didn't back down. That was just not like him.

"Ah'm not stupid, whoever-you-are. Ah found tha note. Word of advice; think your plans through next time, kay?" He growled, spitting the words out with uttmost contempt.

"I'm not going to _hurt_ young Joey. I merely need to... _give _him something. He will be back in your care within five minutes, I assure you," the man elaborated in a fake friendly voice.

"No, weirdo. Tha answer's _No, _with a capital 'N'."

"Okay. I gave you the option of going peacefully, now I shall _take _what I need." With that, the man, cloaked in a thick white coat, made a leap for Joey.

Reflexes kicking in at lightning speed, Wally threw a punch at the man, knocking him off course and sending him hurtling to the ground. Joey, who Wally had expected to be cowering far off to the side, was instead standing right next to Wally, looking down at the man and watching to see what he would do next.

Brushing off the previous impact, the cloaked man stood up, seeming to tower over the two boys despite being barely taller than Wally himself.

Wally tossed another punch, but the man caught it, and began trying to push him aside. But Wally's strength held out, and he resisted. But this merely led the two to a stalemate, the man pushing one way, Wally opposing.

Luckily for the Beatles' side, Joey marched up to the man, knowing that he wouldn't let go of Wally for fear of being struck again, and in a second, lowered down and swept his right leg around in a full 180° semi-circle, taking their opponent's legs out from under him and causing him to crash to the ground, hitting his head on the dirt below. The two boys waited a few seconds to make sure he was defeated, and when they got no response but a desperate reaching out of one arm, they left the man to work out how he was going to move from that spot, let alone get back to wherever it is he came from.

"WALLY! That was so completely _amazing!" _The youngest one screamed once they were a reasonable distance away.

"You were all like, _leave him alone, you jerk, _and then he was all, _make me, _and then... and then... wow," he wound down, finally out of breath.

Wally chuckled at his brother's reaction, then stopped and looked down at him.

"Where did you learn those moves? They were pretty darn awesome, and it was even better that you were brave enough to use them on that creep," he said honestly. He was really proud of Joey. He had shown a lot of courage, skill and determination. It may have been strange, but Wally felt that he saw a part of himself in his brother's eyes, a part that he had almost forgotten.

"It was really nothing. I just thought that you were going to be there for a while if someone didn't do something." Though he blew it off as nothing big, Joey felt a lump of pride and happiness rise in his throat. Not only had he encountered the man that was turning the KND operatives bad (he had seen posters of the man), but he had managed to really help his brother and show him what he could do. He felt closer to his brother at that moment than he had in a long time.

Another thing that came to Joey's mind was that Wally's reflexes and technique were pretty good. He struggled to supress a giggle as he imagined something.

What if his brother used to be in the Kids Next Door? He wondered what that would have been like, but after a while, he stopped, shaking the thought from his head. While Wally as a former KND operative was a pretty cool thought, it was completely crazy. Joey was sure that his brother couldn't have been in the Kids Next Door.

"So, squirt. We make a pretty good team, huh?" Wally broke the silence.

"Yep! That was fun!"

"Y'know, it kinda was. If taking on a criminal can be described as _fun._" Wally said. Then, on a whim, he picked Joey up and swung him up onto his shoulders, just like the first time they'd walked to the park.

"I can't _wait _to tell mum and dad about this!" Joey cried.

"Oh, yeah. Everyone has to know about how you took that guy down. You were like a ninja!" Wally smiled up at Joey.

"But you were really cool too, Wally!" Joey smiled down as well.

And so, the two set off home, playfully arguing over who was the most ninja-like.

**A/N: So? What did you think of the whole 'Z2A thing, and Wally's confrontation with _him_? Hope you liked it!**


	14. Ch 13, Final Frontier

**A/N: Okay, so I've gotten a lot of reviews asking about the backstory of this fic, so I have deemed this chapter:**

_**The Reveal chapter!**_

**Well okay, it really isn't that much of a big deal.**

**But anyway, review responses!**

**Mimi: I know, but I will get better for Sector V. The story wouldn't be interesting if life was perfect for them, now would it?**

**Numbuh 166: There is a lot of backstory in this chapter, and, I don't think that soopreme leaders get to keep their memories. I could be wrong though, and I often am. But, hope you enjoy!**

**Numbuh 43: Hope this chapter brings you back to life!**

**Read ahead, amigos!**

Chapter 13 – Final Frontier

"_Numbuh 4! _Would you get the _heck _down!" Though numbuh 5's voice was a mere whisper, something in it told Wally that if she could, she would have shouted it.

"But Ah can't _see!" _Numbuh 4 retalliated. He was craning his neck out of their hiding place in the bushes to get a better vantage point on the subject all their narrowed eyes were trained on.

"I don't care if you can't see! You're going to get us caught!" Numbuh 1 said, putting the matter to rest.

"So, what're we even _doing_ here again?" Wally asked, bored now that he was doomed to a close-up shot of the leaves of the bush.

"Laying low until the right time comes, then ambushing Dr. Colter and his minions in their hideout and taking element Z2A," Kuki recited.

"You memorised that from the breifing, didn't you?"

"Uh-hu!"

Meanwhile, Hoagie was studying their surroundings through the lenses of a pair of binoculars, with contraptions and attatchments sticking out at odd angles.

"Okay, the heat signatures say there are four of them, but I can see another small one somewhere in the middle.

"Ah. That would be element Z2A. Numbuh 2, is there any way you can zero in on the chemical?" Nigel instructed, taking another peek out from between the thick branches of the bush, before ducking back down.

"Sure! I didn't design this thing to be useless!" Hoagie replied, proceeding to jab at some buttons on the side of the gadget.

"Can we _go-o _now?" Wally begged, dragging out the syllables and sagging down as if gravity had just increased twofold.

"Numbuh 4, would you quit your whinging? We'll go when we go! We have to make sure we don't move at the wrong time. If we do, we'll end up acting like teens before next week!" Numbuh 5 scolded, already loading a G.L.U.M.B. with a fresh canister of gumballs.

The adult vs. kid war had been going on for almost six weeks, and both sides had begun to wish that it would just end. every one of the Kids Next Door operatives missed their parents. Since the war, every operatieve for tens of miles had to manage to convince their parents they were going on a two month camp as part of a new school program. Holding up that lie wasn't easy, and many tears were shed as the weekly fake letters were written and sent saying how much they were all enjoying the water-skiing course or the rockpool walks in the morning. All of them had to be pretty inventive and detailed in their recounts, making up stories about how one kid ate fifteen pancakes at breakfast or along those lines.

And through this 'get it over' attitude the battlefield had aquired, both sides were now beginning to make more and more drastic and sometimes risky decisions. That led to the capture of three adult villains (plus the toilenator) a mere fifty feet from the entrance to their base. On the opposite side of the scale, a few children had been held hostage by Grandma Stuffum. When the KND refused to meet the demand and surrender on their terms, the three kids had ended up with some horrible, stewed spinach induced stomach aches.

So when that idea didn't work, everyone went all out.

People got mad, and when people get mad, they don't typically want to sit in a grimy trench writing lies to their parents and hoping they don't get shot with a brussels spout blaster in the next two hours.

In the end, a meeting was called, and a battle plan was constructed.

First, sector V, including Abby, would lay low outside the enemy base until there was a clear enough path to get inside undetected. They were aiming for the labratory; chemical Z2A was stored there and it would be less populated than any other location.

From there, they would ambush, hopefully taking down the remaining troops in the lab. After it had gotten around to the adults that the kids were attacking, their troops would hopefully be ordered to attack. But when they got to the KND base, they would be in for a sneaky surprise. See, all the other kidshad taken off into the surrounding bushy area to await further instruction. It was dangerous, but with olny two weeks until they were meant to return home from 'camp,' they were running out of options.

With nearly all of the opposing side absent, it would be easy to go in there and destroy anything and everything in sight.

And the battle would end, leaving the Kids triumphant, and free to live their hard-earned chilhood once more.

Sector V constantly reminded themselves of that, as time passed in the little green hideout and the nerves began to flutter.

"Is that Dr. Colter coming out now?" Numbuh 3 asked, tilting her head and looking unsurely at a tall, wilting man in a white lab coat.

"Yep. Hoagie, have you got a reading on the chemical yet?" Nigel said, not taking his eyes off the scene in front of them. He looked through the gap in the door as Colter exited, catching a glimpse of a white, test tube laden bench before it closed.

"Got it, numbuh 1. It's a strange reading, it- it's different to anything I've ever seen. Even the fact that it _has _a heat signature is new to me. Wait, hang on a sec. I'm- I'm detecting _movement_ from it." Numbuh 2's face paled a shade. "It was only barely a nanometer, but it was definitely something."

"But, I mean that's gotta be just the vibrations from the people around it, right?" Numbuh 5 said, nervousness bordering her tone.

"No-one in the room is moving." Hoagie's voice was suddenly a lot more serious and concerned.

"Great. Just great. Ah guess at least we can add 'battling evil toxic _moving _mutantchemical' to our resumes," Wally droned sarcastically.

"We should try talking to it. No-one wants to be bottled up in a teensy test tube all day, maybe he just wants to stretch his legs!" Numbuh 3 suggested, quite a bit more cheery than the other four in the team.

We have to get in there. Is the coast clear yet?" Numbuh 1 inquired.

"Just about. There are only two in the lab at the moment, but in the next room there are five. It could be risky if we make too much noise," Hoagie explained, his eyes still glued to the lenses of his binoculars.

Nigel rubbed his chin in thought.

"Okay, that's a risk we'll have to take. Team, we're going in," Nigel said, reaching the end of his patience and getting into a crouching position.

"But-"

"No buts, numbuh 5. We'll just have to deal with it. We can't afford to wait any longer."

The team then readied their weapons, breathing deeply to keep their nerves from getting the better of them.

"_Okay guys, let's go."_ Though they hadn't moved yet, numbuh 1's voice dropped to a whisper. The others nodded, even Kuki's face drawn in a solemn, focussed stare.

Sector V kept low to the ground as they snuck out of the bush. The two in the lab seemed preoccupied with their coffee break. Adults had been enjoying their caffeine-injected beverages a lot more since the KND's unfortunate failure in trying to destroy it.

Nigel held up his hand, then pointed to a small grate a little way over from the door. Nodding, numbuhs 2 through 5 followed their leader through the tight space.

Abby wasn't the least bit annoyed that Nigel had taken back the role of team leader. It was refreshing to have the weight of every one of your decisions weighing down on you, and have to worry about what they would mean to everyone else. Besides, both of them knew that it was a load Nigel was a lot happier to bear.

The vent was covered in a thick, dusty blanket, and all of the team had to breathe through gritted teeth to avoid having to sneeze. They went silently, knowing that even the sightest noise or one slip of the foot would set off an alarm.

Numbuh 86 tapped her foot, a result of both her low level of patience and a rising level of pressure in the situation. It had never been more critically important that everything go to plan than right now.

"Numbuh 86! We're close to running out of ammunition!" It was a boy's voice, one very familiar to Fanny.

"Numbuh 60!" She said in a raised voice, whirling around to face the dark-haired boy. "How long before we're completely out?"

"If we keep using it at the rate we are now, between three and four hours," Patton stated, frowning a little.

"Well, get some more! We have an extra rations compartment in tunnel 5B. Go get some from there!" She barked, trying to cover up her slight panic at how quickly they had become low on supplies.

"OK, I'll get some troops to bring that back. Uhm, thanks numbuh 86," was numbuh 60's response. He seemed a little embaressed at the last part.

Numbuh 60 and numbuh 86 had always been enemies. No-one knew why, and even they themselves struggled to remember, but it was almost, in a way, a _rule_ that they could not get along. But now, a good five years after they had met, something was changing. Fanny would no longer walk past him in the hall having to clench her jaw just to resist insulting him. She could almost bear being near him. Patton also, had stopped being so insistent on making her miserable. He had stopped daydreaming about ways to lure a group of rats into her office, and that was something, right?

Anyway, the two could actually work together on something, put aside their feud and realise that they had to get the work done, for the greater good of the organisation.

But that didn't keep them from putting curry powder on the other's toothbrush every once in a while.

Meanwhile, sector V was getting close to getting into the laboratory in the adults' base. The two men in lab coats still sat, oblivious, in the corner, reading a two day-old newspaper and eating something.

"_Are we going straight in?"_ Numbuh 5 asked in a whisper.

"_Where else would we be going?" _Numbuh 2 replied.

"_I just.. never mind."_

Numbuh 1 turned around to face the other four, something that wasn't easy seeing as they were already cramped as it was.

"_Okay team, this shouldn't be too hard. Numbuhs 4 and 5, I want you to take out those henchmen. 2 and 3, you come with me and see how much of that chemical we can get back in one load," _he directed, face as serious as anything.

The others nodded soberly, focussing every last bit of their nerves into doing their respective jobs right.

"_Guys, we can do this! I know we can. We always pull through, right?" _Kuki reassured, taking a rare break from her usually airy demeanour. She tended to do that only when the team really needed it.

"_Five!" _Abby put out a hand.

"_Four!" _Wally's hand joined her.

"_Three!" _Kuki smiled at the team's togetherness.

"_Two!" _Hoagie slapped his hand on top.

"_One." _Nigel finished it off. Hetook a deep breath, and, after a few seconds of silence;

"_Kids Next Door,_" Nigel started in a whisper, before raising his voice to shout at the top of his lungs;

"BATTLE STATIONS!"

The team burst out of the vent, leaving the mangled grating lying on the floor, now damaged beyond any further use.

Immediately, the respective members of sector V ran off to complete their assigned jobs. Numbuh 4 and numbuh 5 were quick to start on the men in the corner, taking one each and giving it their all.

Numbuhs 1, 2 and 3 were over at the bench in seconds, examining the test tubes of various liquid and which one was the one they came for. Nigel frantically checked the labels of all the containers of chemical, Hoagie began to disassemble a long line of equipment that seemed to be boiling, then condensing the liquid put into one end, and Kuki was picking up beakers randomly, examining them for a time and putting them back down. Nigel, unable to find the chemical yet, let out a desperate and frustrated _'agh!' _and left that bench to check another.

The fight between the two labcoat-donning men and Wally and Abby had ensued, though it was obvious that these two scientists had little experience with hand-to-hand combat. Abby threw a kick at her opponent's right leg, sweeping around so it hit right next to the knee. The man stumbled, but didn't go down. Instead, he attempted a punch right at Abby's face, but missed as she simply ducked down out of the way.

Wally was tearing into his adversary like he had done something to personally harm him, jumping up so his fist was level with the man's face, then striking with all his force.

Suddenly, there was a noise from outside the room. A banging on the door was clearly audible, and everyone, including the men in the corner, now nearing the end of their stength, froze and stared in the direction of the pounding.

"Baker! Johnson! Are you okay in there?" A loud, deep voice yelled. No-one said anything.

"Baker! Johnson!"

The men that numbuhs 4 and 5 were fighting began to say something, only to have their mouths slapped shut by each of their opponents.

"Okay, men. We're coming in. Stay clear of the door!" Came the voice.

Then, the pounding started again, only this time it was sharper, more solid, and much, much harder.

The door could take no more. It gave way with the _crrack! _of splintering wood and the _smash! _of the frosted glass shattering.

In a flash there were at least ten more people in the room, headed by an ageing man whose height only accentuated his slouch.

Nigel gasped.

"Colter," he snarled.

"Ah, if it isn't the Kids Next Door. I don't suppose you've come here to announce your surrender?"

"In your dreams, you old jerk," numbuh 4 jutted in, before giving the man he was against a final hit to the head, knocking him unconsious.

"Oh, a little cocky, are we? Well, I'd say there are better times to get a big head than when outnumbered by the enemy," he taunted, gesturing to the troops that had come through the now vacant doorway.

Again, there was silence.

Colter seemed to enjoy this stand-off, but in the end decided that things needed to be taken care of.

"Take them all. Do anything you have to," he instructed calmly. The adults attacked, and a battle ensued. Numbuh 1 sprung off the bench, landing squarely in front of two of the men. They made a grab for him, but he jumped just at the right time, causing the two to crash into each other. Sprinting over to the middle of the room, he surveyed the status of the fight.

Numbuh 3 was, amazingly, dodging every one of the henchmen's attacks, but, as she was running, dropped one of her mini rainbow monkeys in the middle of the floor. She stopped to go back for it, but one of the men had already taken possesion of it.

"Gimme back my No-man-gets-left-behind teensy-tiny rainbow monkey!" She called. The man smirked evily.

"What, this little thing? I don't think so, girly."

Kuki's face hardened, her fists clenched, and she said quietly, through gritted teeth;

"Give. It."

The man just laughed.

That was numbuh 3's breaking point. She went red with anger, her eyes lighting up with a firey fury, and she launched herself at the man.

"GIVE ME BACK MY RAINBOW MONKEY!"

All the while, numbuh 5 had finished with the man she was first against, and was in the process of taking down two others. Punch, kick, dodge, punch. She had a very planned out, thought through way of fighting.

On the other hand, Wally seemed to have a 'play it by ear' technique. If you could even count it as a technique. It was more 'I don't know what's going to happen next but I'll be ready for it.'

Numbuh 2, not being one for much physical fighting, had spotted a computer in the corner and was fiddling around with the password page, his fingers flying across the keyboard.

After making sure that his team was doing okay, Numbuh 1 went back to fighting off the oncoming forces of the adults.

Hoagie had to rack his brain to remember the steps to bypassing a computer's password requirement. Closing his eyes in concentration, he recited to himself;

"_Control, tab, F12. Type in 'bypass' and click 'accept.'_

Eventually, the desktop screen of the computer was revealed, and numbuh 2 wasted no time in getting into the file listings.

"_Let's see, uhm... how about here," _he clicked into one folder, then pressed back on finding it the wrong one. He did this again, then again, before finally entering one labelled; 'lab.'

Three files showed up. One called 'Mixtures,' one called 'Formulas,' and one called 'Chemicals.' Hoagie was clueless as to which one the thing he was looking for would be in. so he randomly chose 'Formulas' and hoped for the best.

He was in luck.

What came up on the screen was a list of every chemical the adults had stored in their laboratory, followed by the things needed to make it and the way in which they must be used.

Scrolling down to the Z's, Hoagie found chemical Z2A easily.

But, just as he did, one of the adults turned up behind him, about to strike. Hoagie turned around, only just in time to duck out of his way, but he refused to leave the computer. He cringed as the man lifted his arm to strike again, but numbuh 1 caught him from behind before he could. The man, lay on the floor, awake but in pain. Nigel nodded dutifully to Hoagie, and Hoagie saluted in return.

But the other adult henchmen had noticed that one of the kids had found the computer, and were advancing to take the place of their fallen comnrade.

But with the enemy's movement came sector V's as well. While numbuh 3, still in ragemode, took on the one who was trying to pry numbuh 2 from the computer desk, numbuh 4 was holding two more men from getting closer, striking at them every time they attempted a step closer. Numbuh 1 distracted a few of them, running along the benches, knocking off tubes and beakers and expensive-looking equipment to the floor and watching it break. One man lunged at him, but missed and instead went hurtling into one of the floor-to-ceiling glass pannels that formed one wall of the lab.

Numbuh 5, after taking care of two other men, started on helping numbuh 3 move the mountain of a man standing between the team's tech genius and the computer.

This went on for a few minutes, before the man finally gave in (courtesy of a kick to the side of the foot from Abby) and limped away to avoid being hurt any more.

Immediately, numbuh 2 was back at the keyboard, and before long, he had switched up not only the ingredients to Z2A, but the method as well. His finger hovered above the 'save' button, but yet another disturbance stopped him.

Dr. Colter himself stood, only a few feet behind where numbuhs 2, 3, 4 and 5 were, his glare so harsh they could almost feel it burning into their backs.

"Well done. I honestly didn't think you would make it this far," he said, his voice stark and plain. "But I'm afraid I'll have to cut you short now."

"Not so fast!" Nigel shouted from across the room, jumping off the table and walking over to the rest of his team.

"If you do anything to them, this whole place will go up in flames."

"What the _heck _are you talking about, kid?" Colter spat impatiently.

"I just riggesd up a small but extremely powerful explosive to this room. If it gets set off, there will be enough power in the explosion to destroy not only you precious lab, but the entire adult base. So I suggest you don't do anything that you might _regret_ later," numbuh 1 recited cockily. Colter's scowl increased to double its intensity.

"You're bluffing."

"Do you want to find out?"

There was a pause.

"You can blow this place up, I don't care. Do you really think we'd make something containing all our most important files unprotected? The computer's fire proof."

Numbuh 1 was unphased.

"You're not," he stated simply.

While the evil man was distracted with numbuh 1's threat, Hoagie pushed the final button, and the overly complex secret to making chemical Z2A was replaced by... something else. Nigel saw this, and raised his eyebrows in question, as if to say, 'Are you ready for this?'

The four others calmed and re-focussed themselves, and nodded slowly.

Nigel pulled out a small electric box with a big red button on it; the detonator.

"Goodbye, Dr. Colter. Until we meet again," he said, before taking a deep breath and pushing the button. A little pannel under the button lit up, displaying in digital numbers; 0:15. It then began counting down.

"RUN!" Numbuh 4 screamed, making a break alongside the entire team for the gap in the wall that had previously held the sheet of glass.

The moment that Colter realised what was happening, he too was sprinting for the door, following the path of the other men fighting sector V who had fled the scene for safety.

Thirteen seconds later, the Adult's base was literally exploded, burning down in flames.

The war was won.

Sector V's plan had worked.

The adults had found out about the attack on their base, and were all immediately sent to the kids' base. And with the destruction of the adults' base, it was only a matter of time before they were all taken down.

It was all over. After weeks and weeks of exhaustion, nerves, and relentless enemy attacks, the Kids Next Door had pulled through.

The chemical that had the power to change a child's loyalties was destroyed along with the base, and kidkind was safe.

But, even as the remains of the lab stood, covered in ash and blackened metal, Colter staggered over to the computer, which had been fireproofed in case something like this happened. He thought he had outsmarted the kids. He turned it on, keyed in his password, and opened the file with the formula. Then...

"NO!" He cried, realising what had been done.

"Those cursed KIDS!"

On that day, Dr. Arthur Colter swore revenge on the Kids Next Door, vowing to piece that formula back together, even if it took him years.

**A/N: Hope you liked that! Does it explain enough about the story? Also, I have _no _idea why I put that bit in with Patton and Fanny. **

**On another note, I'm going to Sydney on Wednesday, so next chapter might be a _little _late. Probably not, but maybe.**

**Okay, that's all from me! Bye!**

**-xoxo, Numbuh 25**


	15. Ch 14, One by One

**A/N: Oh. My. Gosh. I AM SO SORRY. Has it really been 3 whole WEEKS? I cannot believe I missed 3 WEEKS of publishing. I am so mad at me! GAH! So, So, So, So, So, (ect.) SORRY.**

**Okay, so this chapter: I put in a little more about Robert, our soopreme leader of today, as well as a fairly interesting bit with the gang (I hope). **

**Oh, and to the fake numbuh 166: four words; **

**don't like, don't read. To the real one: It's okay, it's not your fault. Thats all... carry on!**

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Chapter 14 – One by One

"Mom! I'm home!" Kuki called out as she stowed her keys back into the front pocket of her bag. She slipped off her shoes near the door and walked into the kitchen, where her mother was working on a laptop at the bench.

"Hello, Kuki. How was school?" Her mother greeted, taking a sip from a steaming white mug.

"Good. We had P.E, and Annie got four goals in a row in soccer," Kuki recounted. Her mother nodded, then turned to face her completely.

"Kuki, your father and I have to go out tonight. Will you be okay here on your own?"She asked.

"What about Mushi?"

"She's going to a friend's place. Are you sure you'll be okay on your own?" Her mother insisted.

"Mom, I'm sixteen. I think I can handle one night on my own," Kuki assured her. Her mother nodded again, but looked slightly less than convinced.

"Mom, if you're that worried, I'll ask Abby to come over. We can study, maybe watch a movie, she could even sleep over."

This seemed to reassure her mother.

"Well, okay," she resorted, but not without adding quickly; "Just as long as you don't stay up too late."

"But mo-om!" Kuki whined, "it's a student-free day tomorrow! The teachers have planning or something like that. I don't have to go to school!"

But Genki Sanban was still hesitant about letting her daughter stay up without restrictions. She knew that Kuki was a responsible child, but it would be hard for any mother to just leave their daughter alone and without instruction. It was like leaving a small kitten alone for a week with only a small bowl of water and a tiny sliver of food. In short, it was unsettling. But, as she realised that she herself as a teenager would have wanted the same thing, she gave in.

"Alright. But, if you're still awake by the time we get home..." she trailed off at the end, implying that there would be trouble.

"Don't worry, mom! We'll be fine! Anyway, it'll only be me and Abby. It's not like I'm gonna have a party or anything." Genki seriously hoped not.

~(*)~

Hoagie took a deep breath. He was going to do it. He'd been staring at the phone for at least ten minutes now, but he was going to do it. He was going to call her.

He reached for the dial, then drew back nervously. What if she said no? What if she laughed at him? He pushed his fear of embarressment down and tried again to force his hand to the phone. _Just do it. Don't think, dial._ Another deep inhale, and his fingers snapped up the handset before he could hesitate again.

He punched in the number, and pressed the talk button. It was ringing. Meanwhile, Hoagie was at war with himself. -_What am I doing? Hang up, man._

_-No! You've been crushing on her for almost four years now! You have to do something about it!_

_-She doesn't like you! She barely knows you exsist!_

_-Which is why you have to let her know!_

But just as he was about to let the negative side get the better of him, the phone was answered.

"Hello?" Abby's voice said. Hoagie panicked.

"Oh! Uhm, Abby. Uh, hi... Hoagie, it's-it's Hoagie." He kicked himself mentally.

"Okay. What's up, then?"

Hoagie wondered what to say. In fact, he was so busy wondering what to say that he almost forgot that Abby was on the other line.

...

"Hoagie? Ya there?" Came the call from the receiver. Hoagie jumped, then facepalmed, then recouped (ish) and spoke again.

"Oh, yeah, I'm here. Sorry, I had to.. talk to my mom," he fibbed, "but, I was wondering.. I have the footage for the ad for History, and I need someone to help me edit, so I don't, y'know, make something everyone hates.." He swore he heard a small chuckle through the phone.

"Sure. Nigel's over here too, we were studying for our Science test. But judging by the look on his face right now, he'd rather be stuck on Pluto than study for five more minutes." Hoagie laughed a little, but somehow it came off as nervous to him. When a person was this scared, it tended to show even when you didn't intend it to.

"Okay, I'll be over there in five. Can Nigel hold on for that long?"

This time, her laugh was clear. Clear, melodious and bright as usual. That nearly cracked Hoagie into little, tiny pieces.

"Well, we'll be cutting it close," she joked, "so you might wanna hurry. He's almost slipped into a boredom-induced coma. Seeya then!"

Hoagie managed a slightly squeaky 'bye,' then grabbed his laptop and was out the door.

~(*)~

Robert had been lying on the observatory deck of the Moonbase for almost half an hour, thinking, the cogs in his mind spinning so fast they nearly stopped working completely. In the past week alone, at least three-hundred-and-fifty operatives had turned.

Three-hundred-and-fifty.

That would bring their total to coming on one-thousand-seven-hundred. One-thousand-nine-hundred-and-fifty if you count the kids decomissioned in that time. People didn't usually think about things like that in a crisis. Other bad things still happened in a time of crisis. People still contracted other diseases in the time of the plague. But if one big thing was happening, all of the spotlights were rushed to cover it, leaving all the other little things forgotten and shrouded in darkness. That was one of the many, many tangents that Robert had slipped out on as his brain grew less and less focussed. But that didn't stop him worrying. If anything, the more tired be grew, the more he ached to know why, how, what was doing this to everyone. Like if he stopped thinking about it now, he would never have another chance to figure it out. In a matter of months the KND would be over.

The word was like a ten ton block of cement dropped sqarely onto his shoulders. Agonising, pressuring, a heavy toll on not just his mind, but everything about him.

Gone, destroyed, the KND all but a memory. Or maybe not even. The 'turned' kids were still their own age, but non seemed to aknowledge the Kids Next Door's existance. No-one was sure whether the effect was essentially a process like decomissioning, a complete erasal of all memories of childhood, or whether these new 'teens' were simply too ignorant and stuck-up to care about remembering.

Robert closed his eyes, though he was still all too aware of everything going on around him. Every one of the tiniest noises caught him, made him jump, pushed his mind until it was as it was now, on the edge. He was always on alert, never let his guard down. Sleep was something that was rare and precious, and his lack thereof was only adding to the near-paranoic state of mind he was hurtling towards.

Suddenly, it was all too much. Suddenly, he was over the edge. The very thought of being so close to defeat had caused him to break down, like being stuck on a cliff edge, and even the though of being so high and so unstable is enough to make you lose balance. He rolled over until his knees were tucked up under him, and he was srunched up into a ball. He clenched every muscle in his body, strained every fibre of his being, pulled every bone in towards his middle. He squeezed, as if he could physically wring out all the stress, all the pressure, all the fear. Then, lifting instantaneously up onto his knees, he screamed. He yelled as loud as he would let himself, then louder. He screamed at whoever was doing this, at whatever was making this happen, screamed at the stars outside, glittering and twinkling, oblivous to what was going on, just screamed at whatever was there to hear it. When he needed air, he stopped. Drawing in a shaky, jagged breath, he flopped back to lying down, facing outwards towards the sky. The sky filled with planets, stars, all of which had absorbed his frustration as if it were nothing. The sky was still the same. He was both thankful and annoyed by that. It was a source of security to know that there was one thing that would never change, no matter how much things went wrong. There was always the constant, slow-moving expanse of the universe that would always be there. People could look up at the sky, at war or peace, in hatred or love, in hope or despair, and somehow the sky managed to stay the same.

It was comforting.

But at the same time, it was almost insulting.

How could the sky not realise how badly the world below was being effected? It wasn't just the Kids Next Door, but everything; injustice, hunger, war, seemed to be nothing to the sky. Nothing could phase the serene, almost other-worldy way that the stars prickled the sky like holes in a pitch-black sheet of silk. Almost and insult that Earth was apparently not worth crying over.

Robert thanked the stars every night for being there, being a distraction and a break from the real world, but he cursed them for bringing up endless trains of thought like this one.

Robert was suddenly aware of a presence in the room, behind him. He felt eyes burning into his aching back, and instantly regreted the scream.

"Uhm, numbuh 263?" He knew that voice. Joey Beatles. Robert took a deep breath and strained to hold back the tears that pricked the back of his eyes, the ones that he was all but too ready to release.

"Numbuh 404." Robert addressed Joey in his codename, to keep up the belief that he wasn't as distraught as he really was.

"Uh, Ah'm sorry ta interupt..." the little blonde boy stated sheepishly, holding his head a little lower than was usual.

Robert brushed himself off, rising slowly to his feet, and attempted a fake calm smile.

"No. No, I was just finishing up here. Uh, can I help you?"

"Well, ya see.." Joey sounded as if he were embarressed about why he was here, like it was sort of a little off. "Ah've been, well, trying ta find out about sector V," he finished, looking at the floor as he spoke.

"You mean..?"

"Yeah. The _real _sector V."

"Why though?" Robert asked, genuinely confused. Sure, there had been a couple of times when he had wished for some of the old KND legends to come back (if they couldn't fix this, no-one could), but he would expect Joey to have those same thoughts. For want of a better expression, he was a 'live in the moment' kid. At least that was what Robert thought of him.

"Ah-Ah was just insterested. Y'know, since we've got ta live up to them and all."

Robert twisted the corner of his mouth up in thought.

"Well, I guess we have some information on numbuhs 1 through 5, but it's all very restricted, no names or adresses or anything," he recalled, knowing what would happen if you searched 'sector V' from when he had time to be curious. Nothing but current day sector V and a few old mission logs. Nothing about the actual operatives of the original Sector V.

"Ah know. Tha computer's useless." The aussie kid had read his mind.

"Well, there's always..." Robert trailed off, wondering if Joey would catch his drift.

"Tha Code Module? Are you serious?"

Robert shrugged. But inside, he was breathing a sigh of great relief. Nothing like a full-scale investigation to get your mind off things.

So, off they went, looking for the nearest pod that would take them to the Arctic base.

"Oh, and Joey?" Robert said just as they were leaving.

"Yeah?"

"You guys are no less the 'real' sector V than they were."

~(*)~

_Ding-dong!_

The doorbell chimed, announcing Hoagie's arrival at Abby's place. The raven-haired girl began to get up, but Nigel was quicker, having been ready to leave his textbooks behind for the past 15 minutes.

"I'll get it, I'll get it, I'll get it!"He repeated, walking swiftly past where Abby lay on her stomach on the floor, propped up on her elbows and chewing on the end of a pencil.

Nigel opened the door, and there was Hoagie, standing slightly nervously, on the doorstep. He smiled a little when Nigel appeared in front of him, and gave an awkward little wave of his hand.

"Hey, Nigel," he said in a voice slightly smalled than usual.

"Hey. You got here just in time, man. I was about to die of brain overload."

Hoagie resisted the urge to blurt out the words 'physically impossible,' and instead smiled and laughed quietly before wandering inside when Nigel stepped back from the door, proceeding to the living room.

"So I brought over the film, and my laptop, and I was thinking of going with a sort of sepia or black-and-white theme, but if you guys think of something..." It was then that he stopped, paused and realised what he was doing.

"Uhm, uh sorry," he stammered, grinning sheepishly, "I-I mean; Hello!" He gave a little wave, while, once again, he scolded himself inside. Cursed himself for being so socially awkward.

Abby smiled, a small smile like Hoagie wasn't meant to see it.

"Hey Hoags. Come sit down. Y'know, I kinda like that -what was it?- sepia tone." Hoags. Hoagie liked that.

"Yeah, I thought it would add a sort of, y'know, medievil effect to it."

"Exactly."

_Bang-bang-bang._

There was another knock at the door. A pause.

"Well, I'm already here," Hoagie frowned, confused.

Another pause.

This time, the pounding was more desperate.

_BANG-BANG-BANG!_

... ... ...

"Well, someone get the door," Nigel pushed. Hoagie would have gone, but he felt awkward since it wasn't his house. So, finally, Abby got up and walked down the hall to the door.

The other two boys followed, curious to see who was so desperate to get in.

Just before Abby got to open the door, there was yet another banging at the door, this time a deeper, harder _Boom!_

"I'm coming, I'm coming, geez," Abby said, obviously not intending for the serial door-knocker to hear.

The knob turned, the hinges squeaked, but apparently it wasn't fast enough for the person on the opposite side.

Hoagie heard panting, then, before he could wonder why, the door was shoved open and there was a flash of orange and blond.

"Wally! What in the name of Issac Newton are you doing?" Hoagie bluted out. Meanwhile, Wally was doubled over, trying desperately to catch up with the rate his breath was going, and merely held out one finger, giving the sign; _give me a minute._

All the while, Abby had closed the door and bent down to her schoolbag, dumped untidily at the door. Pulling out a waterbottle from the side pocket, handing it to the still panting like a dog Wally. He was grateful, and swallowed half the bottle in a split second.

Once he was inhaling and exhaling at a normal speed again, Nigel asked again; "Wally. What the _heck _is going on?"

Wally took in another deep breath.

"Well, ya see-" another gasp. "Ah was stuck in my stupid tutoring lesson, right?-" again, he drew breath. "And Ah'm sitting there, bored to death, when I realise; there is a window _right there! _Right next to me, like, 5 feet away!-" A deep suck in again. "So, Ah escaped. When my tutor went to get a glass of water, Ah just jumped out!"

"You _what?" _Abby said in almost dry disbelief.

"Ah jumped out. Escaped. Aw, man I would 'ave _loved _ta see the look on her face!" He said with a laugh.

"Right. So you jumped out a window. That doesn't explain what the whole door-pounding, breath-catching, showing-up-uninvited-on-my-doorstep thing," Abby pushed again, folding her arms.

Wally gave a little, almost nervous, laugh. "Eh, well, that's tha funny part. Ah was outside, in tha garden, and Ah see this dog on the otha side of tha fence. Now this ain't no ordinary dog. This mutt is like _this big." _He gestured with his hand, about 4 and a half feet off the ground.

"And before Ah can do anything else, it's all snarly and growly at me, and flies over the fence-" he illustrated this with some exaggerated hand movements- "and comes right at me! So, what else could Ah do but run?" At the end of his little storytime, he took in another gulp of oxygen, followed down his throat by the rest of the bottle of water.

"And you ended up here _how, _exactly?" Hoagie queried. He wondered how the frazzled boy knew where Abby lived.

"Uh, uhm- Ah really don't know." He said it as though only just realising himself. "Ah kinda just, panicked and Ah sort of... took _myself _here, Ah guess."

There was a pause as everyone considered this in their own way.

"Well, my guess is you probably subconciously remembered seeing Abby walk home and that was the first place you thought of," Nigel pitched, though no-one seemed convinced entirely.

"Subconc...? Subcon...? Subconci..? ...Never mind." Wally gave up on that 'big' word before even starting. Hoagie tried to change the subject.

"Well, where's the dog now?" He asked. Wally merely shrugged. Nigel and Abby checked out the windows, but no-one saw any sign of a dog.

"Must have lost interest," Abby dismissed, "Well, now that you're here, Wally, you may as well help with the editing phase." She dropped herself on the couch, deliberately in front of the coffee table Hoagie had put his laptop on.

"Okay, whateva," Wally breezed, flopping down next to Abby.

Nigel and Hoagie sat on the floor, wedged between the coffee table and the couch where Abby and Wally sat, and were about halfway through the editing.

"I think it looks cool like that," Nigel sat up proudly, looking happy with their progress.

"If you like it now, just wait 'til I..." Hoagie trailed off, pressed a few buttons, clicked a few things, and suddenly, the already sepia and old-fashioned filming had a watermarked, yellowed quality.

"Awesome!" Wally seemed oddly fascinated by this. It wasn't usually like him to be so interested in something that involved so little physical contact, but then, he could have still been stuck inside in the middle of a Math tutoring session. Watching paint dry would be better than that.

_Rrrrring! Rrrrrrring!_

The phone announced itself, cutting through the peaceful editing session the group had going on.

Well, aside from Kuki, of course.

_Rrrrrring! Rrrrrring!_

"Is _anyone _gonna leave us alone today?" Abby asked to no-one. Getting up and walking into the kitchen, she fumbled through a few sheets of paper to find the phone, then pressed a button, gave a slight subconcious flick of her hair, and placed the speaker to her ear.

"Hello?"

...

"Oh, hey Kuki. T'sup?"

...

"Well, actually, I have Nigel, Hoagie and Wally over at the moment." .. "Yeah, long story. Apparently, if you have one boy over, they self-multiply until they take over your whole living room." She said with a laugh.

...

"Well, if the others could come."

...

"I'll ask 'em."

...  
"You sure your mom's cool with that?"

...

"Sweet. Kay, seeya there!"

She hung up, returning to the lounge area.

"Hey, that was Kuki," she reported, "her parents are out tonight and she asked us if we wanna come over. So, whaddaya say?" She raised her eyebrows in expectation of a response. Nigel considered that. Sure, it would be slightly awkward, but it'd be fun, right? And he'd really, _really _had enough of anything school-related at all.

_Really._

Hoagie was unsure as well. Going over to a girl's house and probably not leaving until late wasn't really his thing. In the slightest. But, then he weighed out the situation. It ould be three boys to two girls. That made him feel better.

Wally thought he'd refuse at the first moment. Any other day he would have. But, it was Kuki. He was going to be at _Kuki's _for the night.

And besides, he needed to let his parents cool off a bit after his little houdini trick in his tutor lesson. For the third time this month.

So, all the boys agreed, for one reason or another, and soon a proper get-together was arranged.

"Okay. Cool! I'll text Kuki to tell her we're all coming. Nigel, you make a grpcery store run and get some snacks. Hoagie, I'm counting on you for the drinks. Get some cherry soda for me, kay? And Wally, you're in charge of the movies. Meet at Kuki's in fifteen. Let's move people, go!" She alloted the jobs like a drill sargeant, in a mock-military style, then rushed off to grab her mobile from her bag.

_Abby Lincoln: All of us R in! C U there!_

Five minutes later, there was a reply.

_Kuki Sanban: Cool! Can't wait! Bye! 3_

**A/N: Again, I'M SO SORRY. But was it okay? I think I was really in the zone in Robert's little bit. I liked that. But, you tell me! If you have read this, please review! I have guest review on, so just tell me what you think? Please? Okay, that's all from me. Oh, and I'm 13 now. Aw. But, it's not so bad. Anyone know Owl City? He's my favourite singer, and guess what? I GOT TICKETS TO HIS CONCERT FOR MY BIRTHDAY! Woo-hoo! Kay, bye.**

**-xoxo, Numbuh 25**


	16. Ch 15, So Close, So Far

**A/N: Hey hey hey! I'm back! Okay, not much to say right now, so here are the review responses!**

**Numbuh 46: Yay! I was wondering when someone was going to notice the Total Drama reference back there! You are the winner! ...of something. And I think I will put Chad in, that's actually a pretty good idea, thanks!**

**Kai2: Thanks for all the reviews! It makes my story seem more popular than it really is. Glad you like it, and yeah, I think most of us have our lazer tag moments when it stops being a game and starts being a fight to the death... or at least until the temporary disqualification.**

**Maria: I'm typing as fast as I can, but it's hard trying to think of enough interesting plot twists to make the Fic go the full 30+ chapters I intend to make it... Oh, well! I guess I'll just have to go with it and add a lot of side-stories to keep it going!**

** Okay, ready... set... READ!**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 15 –

Kuki was bouncing around the kitchen, going from the oven, where a tray of nachos thick with warm, gooey cheese was bubbling away happily, to the bench where she had a mixing bowl full of choc-chip brownie batter, to her mini-speaker to turn up the volume. As she breezed around swiftly, she sang along to the words of one of her favourite songs.

_Woke up on the right side of the bed,_

_What's up with this price song inside my head?_

Her mother was in her room, getting ready to go out. And Kuki was going out of her way to make the best late-night get-together she could manage. That was typical Kuki. She was always ready for a fun time, and always ready to make it funner. More fun. She didn't know what the right word was, but she knew what she meant.

_Hands up if you're down to get down tonight!_

Nachos came out of the oven, the cheese still at bubbling temperature. They smelled good. Kuki smiled in anticipation as she placed the tray on a cooling rack. Her phone went off with a _ding_ on the other island benchtop.

_Abby Lincoln: We've got the chips, drinks and DVDs covered. We'll be over ASAHLTCR._

Kuki frowned at the strange acronym, before picking up the phone and typing another message.

_Kuki Sanban: ASAH... what R U talking about, girl?_

Another minute and there was another _ping! _as the reply came through.

_Abby Lincoln: As soon as Hoagie leaves the candy rack._

_Kuki Sanban: Oooooh-kay._

She laughed. Hoagie could be one funny kid sometimes. But strangely enough, a little voice in her head told her that he wasn't. Some part of her was almost irritated by his sense of humour. Though she couldn't pin down exactly why. She had only known him personally for a few weeks.

Oh, well.

She went back to the bowl of brownie mix, stirring rythmically and humming along as the singers blared away.

_Woah-oh a oh-oh, _

_It's always a good time._

Ten minutes later, the brownies were in the oven and her mother and father were just about to leave, with Mushi trailing behind, waiting to be taken to her friend's house.

'Remember our agreement?' her father reminded her, giving her a stern but affectionate look.

Kuki counted off the terms of her staying home on her fingers.

'No parties, stay inside, music turned down to a "reasonable level," avoid anything "unsuitable," movies are to stop at midnight, and in bed by twelve-thirty,' she recited.

'Oh, and those who disobey or break these rules shall be hung upside-down by their ankles in their room and grounded until their final year of college,' she added, joking.

'You joke now, but we were serious about those rules. Just a small sleep-over, are we clear?' Her mother said, already knowing the answer.

'Crystal!' Kuki beamed.

'Okay, then. Have fun, sweetie."

Her parents left, Mushi in tow, and Kuki was alone.

But not for long.

The oven _dinged, _and Kuki pulled it open, the sweet, rich scent of chocolate hit her full on. Donning a pair of oven mitts, she pulled out the pan, licking her lips.

No sooner had she lowered the tray to another cooling rack next to the nachos, than the doorbell rang out, startling her slightly, but also putting a smile on her face, or at least brightening the one that was already there.

She opened the door, and found the four of them standing, crowded into the small doorstep to avoid the rain outside she had failed to notice.

'Hey guys! Come on in,' she waved them through with a flourish of her hand, 'I just finished with the brownies.'

'Cool! Wait... do I smell nachos?' Hoagie stopped dead and took another deep breath in.

'Huh. Stick some cornchips and cheese in the oven and suddenly the boy's a german shepard,' Abby mused.

Kuki laughed at both Hoagie's keen sense of smell when it came to anything food-related, and her friend's humorous comment that almost suggested she'd been watching him enough to know that.

'Yup, they're on the bench,' Kuki said, but apparently in vain as the yellow-sunglass clad boy was already moving towards the kitchen in a manner that reminded Kuki of a cartoon character drifting through the air in persuit of food.

Abby, Nigel and Wally waltzed in after Hoagie, Abby and Wally placing each placing a bulging bag on the island bench closest to the entryway.

'We got chips -plain, salt and vinegar and barbeque- doritos, pringles, and for afterwards, butterscotch-caramel-ripple ice-cream, and a few packets of whatever on the rack we touched first,' Abby announced, pulling each bag of assorted snack out of the plastic shopping bag as she listed them.

'And the Sour Spiders' Nigel added. At the store, he'd been extra-careful to make sure there were at least three bags of them in the mix.

That was a lot of snack food.

Now, it was Wally's turn to rant.

'Well, Ah was gonna get Prom Destroyer three, but then Ah realised that there were gonna be _girls _here, and Ah was in no way about to rent a stupid reach-for-tha-tissues chick flick, so Ah went with the entire series of Austin Powers, and a few otha funny movies Ah thought you'd loike. Ah mean, comedy is like tha all-rounder, right? Can't go wrong with comedy.' Kuki smiled. Now they had something to do while trying to get through all the food they had.

'Too right. No way to screw up there,' she agreed.

'Hoagie?' Abby went over to nudge the boy in the back, disturbing him from his vacant staring at the trays of nachos and brownies that were oh-so-tempting.

'Hm? Oh! Oh, yeah,' he reversed back to where the others were standing, placing his own grocery bag with the rest of the supplies.

'I got some soda; plain, orange, lemon-lime, cherry-' he breifly glanced at Abby- 'and tutti-fruity. I don't know what that is, but it came in the value pack, so we may as well try it.'

'That's a... lot,' Kuki said, once again going over the mass of things that were taking up almost all of the bench, 'are we really going to finish all this?'

'Well, I guess we'd better get stuck in then, if we want to finish it,' Abby said, clapping her hands together.

Kuki had everything ready already. Pillows from every room in the house had been piled up onto the couch and two armchairs that adorned the living room. The DVD player had been hooked up, and there was a small wooden table in the centre of the room ready for the food.

'Right this way, Ladies and Gentlemen, your movie -marathon- is about to begin,' she joked, with a gesture towards the room, adding the word 'marathon' a little lower, like a subtext.

Her friends filed in, Nigel on one side of the couch, Hoagie on the other. Wally slumped down in an armchair, scootching it over towards the middle a bit to get a better view of the TV screen and so he did not look left out. Abby seemed more comfortable on the floor, arms on the table in front of her, where she could turn around and see everyone clearly. Kuki grabbed the pile of DVDs on the bench and followed her friends into the living room. Picking movie on the top of the pile, she turned on the DVD player and slotted the disk in, before taking a seat next to Abby, surrounded by the table, the couch and Wally's chair.

The lights were switched off, and the movie started, the light from the screen flickering across the room.

Partway into the second movie, when the nachos were gone along with the first bag of chips, and everyone was good and ready to not move for at least another six hours, Kuki had a thought. She had only known three out of four of these people less than a year, but it seemed so easy to be around them. Where someone you were only just getting to know would feel a little more secluded, and tend to be a little more self-concious about how they act, she felt she could just as easily fool around and make a fool of herself in front of these people as if she had known them years and years.

Wally stirred.

'Ugh. Ah want somma that brownie, but Ah _really _don't wanna move,' he groaned.

'You and me both, man,' Hoagie seconded, reaching out an arm feebly towards the table.

Abby rolled her eyes, still not taking her eyes off the TV screen.

'Geez, you really are such go-getters, you two, huh?' She chided, passing up the tray so the boys could take a piece.

'Hey, mind passing it over to the left?' Nigel chimed.

Abby said nothing, but swivelled the tray over to the other side of the couch into Nigel's reach. When Hoagie tried to sneakily grab another slice without Abby noticing;

'Hey! You got your bit, leave some for the reast of us!' She said, putting the tray back to its place on the table and removing her hat from her head, using it to smack him.

'What the- I-it's like she has eyes in the _back of her head!' _he exclaimed, looking to the other boys either side of him for confirmation.

'Sh-sh-sh! This is a good part!' Kuki hushed, waving her arms at the rest of the group, eyes glued to the screen.

The room quietened, with the exeption of the DVD, which blared away in front of them, oblivious to anything other than itself.

~(*)~

Wally and Robert had been flying for about ten minutes, with the radio on quietly in the background. Joey couldn't help thinking that Robert looked uncomfortable in some way, which, in turn, made himself uncomfortable. His mind kept returning to that moment, he was on his way to his Soopreme Leader friend's office, hearing the scream from the skydeck, seeing Numbuh 263 on his knees, as if begging for mercy, it was unsettling to say the very least. Almost worrying that their leader was so afraid, but then, everyone needed an outlet for their stress, especially in such a hard time. The speakers sang out with a song that neither boy recognised, and no-one spoke. It was like there was some barrier, a wall between them. Anxiety was openly present in the air.

Finally, when the atmosphere turned from clear to a foggy white, and the hillsides turned into mountains, Robert broke the silence.

'Uhm, how long have you been looking for the original sector V?' he asked, obviously looking for something to break the ice- a little heavy-handed seeing as they were gliding above endless expanses of ice at that moment.

'Well, quite a while, actually,' Numbuh 404 confessed, 'Ah dunno, Ah guess Ah just really wanted ta know.'

Robert seemed to think his answer over before replying.

'Yeah, I guess it would be kind of interesting to know who your predecessors were.'

The boy had such a mature way of speaking, it defied his age infinately. Just another thing that Joey had to think about; well, it had better get in line.

When they reached the Arctic base, after what seemed like almost a day of bleak white plains and blizzard-blurred dunes of snow, the tight feeling the two boys had buried deep in their stomachs began to subside, replaced by a buzzing feeling of anticipation. They threw on their gloves and parkas, as well as snowboots and snowhelmets, before heading out. Despite the many layers they had on, the cold still bit through to their skin, causing them both to shiver.

Once again, in silence they made their way to the entrance of the Kids Next Door arctic base, a mere lone pine tree with a red flag wedged between two boughs.

Of course, that was all there was until you got underneath.

Tapping on the trunk of the tree, Robert eyed his watch and fidgeted impatiently, fiddling with the ties on his jacket and bouncing on his heels agitatedly.

Finally, there was the sound of mechanics from inside the tree, then half the seemingly solid trunk slid back on itself, revealing a fully operation albeit slighly cramped elevator.

Standing in the elevator already was Numbuh 556, aka Alena Fitzgerald.

'Oh, Uhm, Numbuh 263, sir!' she scrambled to give a salute, and this of all things seemed to break Robert's anxiety.

'Numbuh 556, how many times have I told you that you don't need to salute to me. No-one does,' he reminded with a small laugh. Ever since he started as Soopreme Leader, he had insisted on telling everyone to ditch the formal salute; he didn't want to be treated with some military form of respect, he wanted people to respect and like him as a friend, no automatic physical signs of loyalty attatched. He didn't want to feel superior; he knew exactly where he'd be without everyone else. Nowhere.

'Oh, right, of course sir. May I ask what you're doing here? I don't want to interupt anything, I mean...' she said, stumbling over her words.

'Just a little research mission,' Numbuh 263 said, which was technically true. Only he was really meant to be doing paperwork back at Moonbase. He hadn't been on a real mission in almost a year. 'We just came to check something out. We'll be gone in ten minutes, tops.'

Alena nodded hastily, glancing down at her clipboard as if there was something on it that was relevant to the conversation. 'Okay then.'

There was silence. Robert and Joey stood, wondering if numbuh 556 was going to move the elevator, which only took a maximum of two people at a time, seeing as it was only as wide as the trunk of the pine tree.

'Weeell, we should be goin' now,' Joey said, 'I'm due for dinner at six.'

That seemed to jolt Alena back into focus.

'Oh, yes! Yeah, I- I have to go too.' She gulped. 'But, uhm, before I do... Robert?'

'Yeees?' He dragged the word out expectantly.

'I- uh, well, you see...-' she gave a big sigh, giving in to whatever big news she was holding back. 'Ten more operatives have turned this afternoon.'

Of course, the boys were saddened and worried, but this was news they'd come to expect over the past weeks. There had to be something more. And suddenly, both boys felt the need to know _who _had turned. Robert gave Alena a stern but soft look, before saying, in a small, dread-filled voice;

_'Who was it?'_

Numbuh 556's eyes brimmed with tears. She wanted to say it, wanted to get it out, but it just wouldn't come. She opened her mouth, spluttered for a second, and finally;

'It- it was Jamie.'

And then, Robert's gaze drifted, drifted to nowhere. He was looking at the wall of the elevator above Alena's head, no longer feeling the sting of the arctic winter outside. And for a minute, nothing moved. His best friend. The girl who had pulled him through his misery and renewed his faith in not only himself, but the entire organisation. Jamie Clearway was special to Robert, and now that she was gone, he saw that inch, that hint of a crush grow, and now that she was gone, he felt it more than ever.

Gone.

Gone was the girl who could tell when something was wrong, even when you were doing your best to cover it. Gone were those stunning, bright emerald green eyes, replaced with the mascara-slicked eyes of a teen.

Gone was the only girl he pictured himself with as "more than friends."

Alena groaned, as if she'd just done something personally to upset her leader.

'I- I'm sorry, Robert! I- j-just had to tell you, I didn't want you to find out the hard way.' There was no other way. Every way was the hard way.

'I... w-we have to go now,' Robert said, his voice strained by the tears he was holding back, but they pushed forward just behind his eyes like a dam about to break

Alena left, shaking her head at herself and clutching the clipboard close. Joey caught a glimpse of the words she was whispering to herself harshly;

_'Such a stupid girl, you could have offered something, should have done something...'_

The elevator trip, with the boys elbow to elbow in the small space, was silent and almost awkward, and Joey felt like a bear caught in a trap for the second time; _didn't we just get out of this?_

Robert kept his silence, he could focus only on holding those tears back, speaking would surely open the gate. Joey held his tongue out of respect, wanting to give his friend time, and not force him into a conversation when he was in a state like this.

The elevator dinged, and the door opened on the busy, bustling inner warehouse of the Arctic base. Kids were replenishing ammo and supplies, cadets were being trained, operatives on break threw frisbees and chased each other in and out of the stacks of equipment. Robert looked over to where a troop of young recruits, they gave him bittersweet memories of him and Jamie, as energetic cadet operatives, giggling and talking and dreaming about being full agents. That time seemed so far away, so distant, almost another lifetime from where they were now.

Another five minutes, and they were two levels down, where the Code Module was stored.

'Well, this is it, roight?' Joey said, clapping his hands together and hoping to break the tension. 'We finally find out.'

~(*)~

'I want popcorn!' Kuki declared as the third movie finished. All the food on the table was gone (i.e. two bags of chips, the nachos an the brownies) and they had already gone through two-and-a-half bottles of soda.

Kuki jumped up and exited the room, moving into the kitchen to find the popcorn kernals, the butter and the salt.

'I'll help!' Abby chimed, rising from the floor and stretching. Before the movie finished she had been stretched out on her stomach on the floor, sick of the uncomfortable hardness of the wood floor.

'Yeah, I guess I could take a break,' Hoagie agreed, following the girls out of the room, closely tailed by Wally and Nigel.

Kuki already had the stove working when the boys got to the kitchen, and was busy pouring the contents of a blue bag into a saucepan on the bench, the small, brown kernals making a _clink-clink-clink _sound as they came to impact on the metal. Abby was slicing off about a third of a stick of butter an putting it into a bowl to go into the microwave.

'So, what movie is going up next?' Nigel asked, looking over Kuki's shoulder as she placed the lid onto the now half-full saucepan of popcorn kernals.

'Uhmm,' she tapped a small finger on her chin in thought.

'What about _Zoolander?' _Wally suggested. He leaned bak on the bench, stretching his legs out, arms crossed.

'Yeah, that sounds cool,' Abby nodded, placing the bowl of butter into the microwave and keying in the numbers.

Kuki put the pan carefully onto the stove, then turned up the heat.

'Alright, we've got about five or so minutes until this stuff is done,' she thrust a thumb in the direction of the stovetop. 'So, I guess we have some time to kill until then.'

'Anyone watch the game last night?' Hoagie asked. Kuki and Abby said no, Nigel did the same, a little more quietly.

'If ya mean the NRL Manly versus Melbourne, then yeah,' Wally started, 'but if you're talkin' NFL, then nah.'

Out of manners, Abby inquired;

'Why? Was it a good game?' to which Hoagie answered;

'Uh, I really don't know. I didn't watch it, I was just, sorta, making conversation, I guess.'

There was a loud bang_! _as the first kernals in the saucepan began to pop, and everyone jumped slightly at the noise.

'Haha, Ah love seeing it do that!' Wally laughed, refering to the bouncing popcorn as it tapped on the clear glass lid, trying to break free. Interested, he wandered over to the stove, looking over the pan as more and more of the little seeds began to explode, turning the light pattering into a full-on belting.

And, not thinking straight, combined with the fact that it was 11:45 and his brain wasn't functioning properly, combined with his not-too-bright common sense, he reached for the handle to the lid. By the time the others realised what he was doing, they barely had time to shout _'No!' _before the lid was off and the room was ambushed by flying popcorn.

Ducking instinctively, Abby shouted;

'Wally! What the heck did you do _that_ for!'

'Ah-Ah dunno! I just wanted to see what would happen!'

And Hoagie replied;

'Well, now you know! Can we _please _get a lid on that thing now?'

By now, all of them were on the floor, though they still got hit with the popcorn as it rained down from above. And though their snack was being wasted, none of them could keep a straight face. Withing thirty seconds all of them were in stitches, even more so when Nigel accidentally caught a piece of airborne popcorn in his mouth.

Finally, Wally scrabbled up to the bench and grabbed the lid, which had been dropped in the panic and lay discarded on the bench.

Almost all the popcorn was gone. And no-one could stop laughing. It was chaos, and everyone loved it. And somehow, they felt like real friends. Real friends who had known each other all their lives.

'Wally, I suggest you stay _out _of the kitchen for now,' Kuki said, panting.

Once all the escaped popcorn had been swept away, and a new load (lid _on, _of course) had been put on the stove, the casual conversation continued, though this time much more comfortably.

Flying popcorn: Guess that's one way to break the ice.

And strangely, as they were talking, everyone was thinking the same thing, despite their short aquaintances with each other; it was completely typical of Wally to do something like that.

**A/N: So, what did you think of it? I like doing the bits with Numbuh 263, though I think I kinda pick on him a bit. Poor Robert, going through all that stuff... Oh, and when I said the bit about the 'mascara-slicked eyes,' I was really reffering to most of the teens in the show. I didn't mean real teens. But really, most of the teenage characters in the show are like that, aren't they? Anyways, I'll be back next week, with the words and the pages and the... aw, you know what I'm talkin' about!**

**-xoxo, Numbuh 25**


	17. Ch 16, Dreams and Disasters

**A/N: Hey! It's me! Sorry I'm a day late, but I was in Sydney visiting my family over the weekend. But, I still got the chapter up in reasonable time seeing as I was away for over three days, huh? Okay, enough of my stupid excuses, on with the chapter!**

**Oh, andthis chapter is named after my favourite song (Owl City, of course!)**

**Numbuh: Thanks! Although I'm not sure I'd be good enough to be a member of the TND...**

**Numbuh 46: Yeah, I know you know I know I love it... wait, what were we talking about again?**

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Chapter 16 – Dreams and Disasters

Nigel let out a deep yawn. It was 3:30. In the morning. He and his friends were meant to have been in bed, in their sleeping bags in the lounge room three hours ago, but after Kuki's parents had arrived home, settled into their own rooms, tired from whatever it is they were doing, at around midnight, the five teens had gotten up and snuck the TV back on to finish off the two and a half DVDs they had still yet to watch. With the volume down low and voices held to a tight whisper, they had gone undetected until now, and planned to keep going with the movies for as long as another two (Kuki had raided her DVD cabinet) could stand.

Nigel had never really been up this late -or early, should it be- at all. Not even on new years'. It was a strange feeling. Almost like you were breaking some sort of rule. He wasn't sure exactly _what _rule, but still, it felt that way.

The movie on screen was pretty good, but there were blank patches where he guessed he'd fallen asleep.

Wally yawned deeply from somewhere next to him. His eyes were getting heavy again, and though he fought to stop it, Wally's yawn caught on, and within the next minute, Nigel was asleep, along with the other four teens in the room.

~(*)~(*)~

Nigel arose groggily. He stretcched out his back and went to rub his eyes, but was blocked by a glass lens. He felt around and pulled off a pair of black sunglasses.

_'Huh?' _He whispered to himself, wondering where the shades had come from. He stood up, his legs almost giving way. He stumbled, nearly fell before he caught himself. Once he had his balance, he looked around, wondering where he was. He saw... a soda bar. All that was there was a long, wooden bartop, lined with stools, a lounge furnished with couches, armchairs and coffee tables, it was a pretty nice setup, but completely empty. It was eerie, hollow, deserted. Nigel gave a shiver, it wasn't cold, but the air was so strange, isolated, like a childhood memory devoid of any life. Not that Nigel had any childhood memories. There was a big hole in that part of the film of his life.

But then, like someone had switched on a light, the soda bar was crowded with people. Some Nigel recognised, he saw Rachel, Fanny, Patton, and a few unnamed faces he had seen around, while some were completely unknown to him. But there, in the corner, sitting on the bar stools with tall glasses of root beer, were Hoagie, Kuki, Wally and Abby. No-one noticed him, as if he were a ghost. Nigel realised that the sunglasses still hung from his hand at his side. In some unconcious choice, he lifted them to examine in the light. They were nice, if a bit worn. He slipped them on, not really sure why, and suddenly the view of the sodaa bar changed again. It took a few seconds for him to notice how, but now, he realised in disbelief, he was looking at a bar full of kids. Startled, Nigel took off the glasses and blinked hard. The room was once again full of teens. Frowning, Nigel walked around, unconvinced as to the reality of this picture. Something occurred to him, something crazy, but something. He slowly brought the glasses up, placed the, over his eyes. As he half-expected, kids ruled the soda bar once more.

But not just any kids. The people he had been looking at before, the teens that were sitting there, talking, gossiping, texting, doing what teens do, were now a bunch of kids, chasing each other through the chairs and around corners, joking and laughing and yelling. But what was more, Nigel was seeing the people from before the sunglasses went on, the people _he knew _as kids. Rachel's hair was shorter, skimming below her cheeks instead of her shoulder, her face had a thinner covering of freckles, looked overall younger, less mature. There was patton, shorter and less muscled, who had a boyish grin on his face as he watched Fanny having a temper tantrum at a boy with dusty blonde hair. She had thinner legs, a rounder face. It was all too weird.

But what caught Nigel by surprise, caused him to do a double take, was the group of four over in the corner. Abby, Wally, Kuki, and Hoagie were there, though they looked so much different. So much different, yet he instantaneously knew who they were.

Abby was wearing what looked like only a shirt, that went down to just above her knees, white sandles and her red hat. Nigel found himself smiling in a '_typical Abby' _way, but stopped as he realised he couldn't know the typical Abby. She was sipping on what looked like an iced chocolate, times five. It was piled way past the brim with whipped cream and chocolate syrup.

Hoagie, well Hoagie was... a lot _rounder_ than Nigel remembered, wearing some kind of aviator's cap and goggles with a blue T-shirt instead of his usual white polo and overshirt. He was chugging down his fourth vanilla milkshake, with two of the bartenders -who, strangely, also seemed to be children- watched as if something was riding on the outcome. Hoagie finished the the shake and slapped the glass down on the bartop, demanding another, while one of the bartenders, head dropping, handed over not money, but a card, one Nigel vaguely remembered some kids in the street talking about, yapper or something like that. Funny, kids wagering over how many milkshakes the tubby little boy could chug.

Wally watched the betting from the seat next to Hoagie, with his own root beer in front of him, looking so much shorter that Nigel had to laugh, but the way his fringe covered his eyes in shadow was exactly the same. Kuki still had the ever-present beam on her face still bright as ever. She held a dainty little glass of pink lemonade with a cocktail umbrella in the side. She had on a sweater that was at least ten sizes too big, black leggings and was giggling like she'd just heard the funniest joke in the world.

Looking down at himself, he realised that he, too, had changed. His brown pants were now shorts, an his red Tee and black jacket had been replaced by a long red sweater.

Suddenly, he was noticed. By Rachel.

'Nigel! How's it going?' She called, waving cheerily. Nigel waved back hesitantly. Rachel gestured for him to come over, so he did.

'What is up, my friend? Long time no see!'

'Uhm, not much, I guess.' Nigel was fairly sure this was a dream, but it was still uncomfortable being in this situation with his crush, who he had only actually talked to about twice.

'So, seriously though, where have you been? It's been, what, a year and a bit?'

Nigel was suddenly, unexplainedly, nervous about answering, and felt that there was something she wasn't supposed to know.

'Well, y'know, just stuff, I guess...' he found himself saying, but the girl opposite him didn't seem convinced.

She looked him over, as if trying to see what was happening in his head.

'There's something you're not telling me, isn't there?' She deadpanned. Nigel felt something inside himself cave in, something he couldn't control. Without thinking, he grabbed Rachel's arm, uncomfortable with the meer action, and began to drag her towards a janitor's closet.

He pulled the door open, walked the two of them in, and closed the door behind them.

'Okay, I'll tell you where I've been, but you have to promise me one thing,' he said, the words not his own. Rachel looked startled, but not afraid. She swallowed, then nodded solemnly. And Nigel's mouth just kept going, kept on as if someone had gotten their hands on his remote control.

'This is top secret, Rachel, _top _secret,' he whispered, 'if any of this got out to the Teens, the Adults, I hate to think what it would mean.' A deep, steadying breath.

'I- We- The Kids Next Door, I mean...-' a sigh- 'the GKND. Galactic Kids Next Door. That's where I've been.'

Rachel held a look of confusion, waiting for more.

'What- I mean, I don't understand. The Galactic... what does that mean?' She stumbled.

'Well, I'm going to put this bluntly. Adulthood- it isn't- it isn't natural. It's like a, a sort of disease. And it's affected a lot of planets. Not just ours. And to stop it, they - anddon't ask me who '_they' _is, I have _no _idea- started the GKND. One kid from every planet, goes out there to join the organisation. And-' Nigel tried to say it without sounding in the least bit like he was bragging- 'I was Earth's representative.' He took another deep breath.

'I- don't believe it,' Rachel breathed. She had a far-off look in her eyes. Nigel managed a small smirk.

'What, I'm not that bad, am I?' he joked, one eyebrow raised. Rachel snapped out of her phase and shoved him playfully; 'You know what I mean.'

'But, well, there's one more thing,' Nigel said, ending the joke. 'Once you leave your planet, you're not really _meant _to come back.'

'...I don't understand. I mean- you're here right now.'

'I- Well, I was looking through some files one day, when I stumbled upon a bugged conversation recording labelled; 'Earth Operations.' Of course, that was the first that I'd heard of my own planet in a couple months, so I boot up the computer and sit down.' He looked up to find Rachel staring intently at him.

'Anyway, I start listening, and I hear, guess who? Father, Cree, the Delightful Children, teen ninjas, ice-cream men, every villain you could name, all in one place. Now-' he gave a small, inward laugh- 'although it was a bit of a "blast from the past" to hear them all again, even if it was an enemy's voice, I figure out what they're talking about.

... The adults are planning an attack. Three weeks from now.'

'_What?!' _Rachel made no hesitation in her shock.

'Sh-sh-sh-shush!' Nigel hushed, eyeing the door nervously.

_'What?' _Rachel said, more quietly this time.

'I- Oh my gosh, Nigel, we-we have to do something! We can't, we have to- we gotta tell someone!' Rachel ranted, breathing becoming shallow and quicker.

'Woah, woah, calm down, hyperventilating will get us nowhere. You need a paper bag there?' Nigel tried to get Rachel to a sane point again, his hand on her back.

'Look, I agree, we do have to do something about this, but we have three weeks, and today's not a day to be worrying about this, it's meant to be a celebration, right? Patton's twelvth birthday, right?' Nigel suddenly regretted telling her anything.

But she seemed to calm down a little. Seemed to hold it back.

'You're- I guess you're right. Let's go out there before we miss out on cake.'

She turned to open the door, but Nigel, still under the control of his new, kid body, stopped her.

'Wait, Rachel. Are you okay? You know we'll get through this. We always do. It'll be fine.' She nodded with a head hung low.

'And another thing? I'm- I'm not really supposed to be here. I'm actually "forbidden" from leaving the space station. I just - I was barely coping with the pain of not being here. I missed the team, I missed all of them, the missions too. I missed actually _knowing _whatthe laws of physics were for where I was, because let me tell you, there are some strange things out there, _really _strange. But most of all, I kept thinking about what _you_ were thinking. I didn't know what you thought about me not being there. I-' he could feel himself blushing. He knew what he was about to do, and he was dreading it, but he had said too much to think there was any way he could stop it.

'I missed- I missed _you_.'

Rachel stopped. Just stood there, not doing anything, taking forever to process what he'd said. And, it was then that Nigel finally felt the dread kick in. What had he done? e coud have just ruined an amazing friendship, and even though he was now 99% sure that he was dreaming, he still felt it, still wondered '_what friendship?'_

'I- that's- so sweet, Nigel. I didn't know you felt that way.'

'Well, I-' Nigel wasa cut off.

'I do too.'

'Say _what?_'

'I-' Rachel hesitated, blushing and rubbing the back of her neck. 'I- l-like you too.'

After that, neither was really sure what to do. They sat there, both feeling awkward, but both feeling joy welling in their chest.

'Well, now I wouln't be surprised if we really _had _missed cake,' Rachel finally said, smiling in that way that caught Nigel every time. That there was what he'd been craving for the year-and-a-half he'd been away. Just that smile.

Rachel got up, kissed Nigel on the cheek quickly, like it was no big deal -but, she had done it, hadn't she? She had actually done it, it wasn't just his imagination?- Hang on, this is a dream! Nigel's heart sank as he realised that none of this was real. But, he still had no control over what he was doing, so remained as happy as if it was all one hundred per cent real.

And he left the closet.

Hoagie, Kuki, Wally and Abby greeted him as he walked out into the noise of the children in the soda bar. They had saved him a seat. He gladly took it, realising that somehow he was in control again, he knew what he was doing.

He ordered a caramel milkshake and sighed deeply.

'What were you doing in the closet, number 1?' Kuki asked, her voice naïve and overall airhead-ish.

Number 1. Number 1. It was not so much a numeral, as a name. Not a number, a numb_uh. _

'What were you doing in the closet numb_uh_ 1.' That was right.

~(*)~(*)~

'Nigel. Niii-gel. ... Nigel!' Suddenly, Nigel found himself wakened, with Abby and Hoagie leaning over him.

Awake again.

Reality again.

Yet somehow, that dream felt like a concious memory, even if it was already starting to fade.

**A/N: Yeah, I couldn't resist the whole Nigel/Rachel thing. I'm a sucker for the couples. **

****Soapbox moment** Ladies and Gentlemen, I am thrilled to announce that we have broken FIFTY reviews! Woo-yeah! I'd like to thank Fanfiction, for giving me the chance to express my obsession in ways other than the classic fangirl squeal, and a huge thanks to Mr. Warburton, without whom none of us would be in this fanfiction site today. I am so honoured, I just feel so happy- **dragged off by one of those big hooky thingys** Nah, I'm just joking! ;) **

**But seriously. Thanks. **


	18. Ch 17, Breaking Through

**A/N: Hey hey hey! Okay, straight down to buisiness.**

**This is the chapter you have been waiting for.**

**You have PM'd me, sent reviews begging me for it, and I delivered. Hallelujah! It will happen over a few chapters, but this is the first! The road to recovery will be long and bumpy, but well, it's the road to _recovery, _so why would the end _not _be worth it? ;)**

**P.S. Watch out for that little star-eyed-wavy-arms guy between the paragraphs! ;~~(*)o(*)~~; (that guy is for you, Kai. Thought he could use some hands! ;))**

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Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

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Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 17 – Breaking Through

Amanda sighed as she walked home that day. It was mid-afternoon, and the sun hung behind her, lengthening her shadow as she walked. She didn't feel like walking. She didn't want to do anything. She just couldn't take being alone any more.

Her team had been totally wiped out since the start of the month.

She was the last one left. The only one. The only numbuh left. The rest ignored her completely. Pointedly. Like they were trying to insult her. They were as good as teens now. As good as nobody to her.

Amanda had had a run-in with the one who called himself Colter, the one who was making this all happen. He was armed with guns, syringes, spray bottles. Amanda managed to get away without being caught, the only thing she hadn't avoided was inhaling a bit of that dizzying yellow gas. But she wasn't hurt or kidnapped or turned into an adult on the spot, and was thankful and just a little bit proud of herself for that. At the time. Then, once the dreams started showing up, she gradually realised that the aim of the attack was not to capture, not to injure, but just to implant.

To infect.

The yellow gas was what did it. At the scene it had only left her slightly disoriented and a bit wobbly on her feet, but now she had a few clues as to what was for. What it did to you.

The dreams had started about two weeks ago. Three days before the last remaining teammate she had left turned for good, joined the others.

One night, she had gone to bed, like usual. Read way later than she should have, like usual, and fallen asleep, all like usual. But the nightmare started as soon as she let her lids fall shut. Like the shutter on a camera, they blinked black, and there it was. The treehouse. Only, not _her _treehouse. At least, it looked nothing like her treehouse. Instead of the thick, healthy green foliage, there were sharp, jagged sticks emerging from every bough, thorns scattered, deadly along creeping vines, they all seeped toward her.

All found her.

She ran, but the ground under her moved like a conveyer belt, running in the opposite direction, taking her closer to it, the gaping mouth, the planks of what used to be her favourite lookout point now ready to swallow her whole. The floor of the kitchen stuck down like fangs, waiting to pierce flesh.

And then, she had woken, mid-scream, sweaty, and gasping for breath like she'd been dunked underwater.

They had just gotten worse from there. Out came the friends, the people she knew so well, first being tortured, running away with her, then, they switched, just left, and now, they were the ones doing the torturing. They were the ones hunting _her._ Amanda was a girl with a strong will, but every now and then, at this Moonbase announcement or that district meeting, she had become snappy, almost mad at her fellow operatives -should she even say that anymore? _Fellow _operatives? She felt like just her now, just Amanda. She thought of herself as Amanda now, not number... numbuh 676. She almost forgot her number -no, wait, numb_uh_- sometimes now- and she was getting worse every day, worse with every dream. In the dreams, the recent ones anyway, the place she was running to, the place that came to mind when she started trying to escape her former teammates tight grasp, was... somewhere. Somewhere.. with teenagers. It was difficult to say, even more difficult to realise as it actually happened, but Amanda felt more comfortable when she was crowded with high school students or the parents that came to pick up their children from school than she did sitting in a classroom full of kids her own age.

And that was when, in the middle of the path, Amanda realised what was happening.

She was turning. Switching, ditching, flipping, the KND operatives had many names for the process now, but she knew she was going. Who knows how long it would be before she was completely out? Before she forgot how great it was to feel smaller than everyone, yet stronger at the same time? How long until best friends and little sisters turned into stupid, snot-nosed brats? It would only take days. Maybe the realisation of what was happening would slow down the process a bit. Amanda hoped so.

Hours passed, she went home, barely touched dinner, then sent herself to bed at 6:30, claiming to feel sick.

She did feel sick. Sick to the head, sick to the stomach with the realisation of what she had been thinking, wanting to do after the dreams started taking hold.

She sat on her bed, staring at the wall, at nothing, really.

She could feel it. Like an itch at the back of her head. It was growing, consuming her. The more she pushed it back, the more powerfully and angrily it returned the shove. She fought, she wanted to anyway, but it just wouldn't work. The itch wasn't an itch anymore, it was a rash, a mark that couldn't be distinguished from her skin, something that was part of her, and she couldn't get it off.

It was going to happen. If she willed it not to happen, it would simply take over that part of her; that part that still held strong. And if she stopped trying... it was too easy for them either way. Just walk in, take my body, take my mind. It's not me anymore, but it's another in your army.

Amanda fell asleep, not wanting to let herself go, turn herself in, hand over to what she knew would happen, but at the same time not wanting to see another second of the fading light outside. The last rays of sunset reminded Amanda of the small part of her that _was _still just that. Part of _her._ But soon, she realised, night would fall, those last beams of light would lose the battle, and darkness would win once more.

2:03AM.

Amanda read the eerie green panels of her digital clock as she woke from another nightmare. Another... what could she call it? Another time to strengthen the grip that the 'other side' had on her.

That was it. That was just too much. She had to leave. She felt like escaping from herself. Leaving herself behind, and maybe hoping that the enemy would leave her alone, so she could return. Return to herself, that's what she needed to do.

Before becoming an agent in -what year was it when she graduated? Who was there when it happened? What was that day like? She strained to remember- Amanda had loved sector V. The first one. That, surprisingly, or not so surprisingly, was one of the only details of the KND she could readily remember. She loved them. They were all she wanted to be, all she aspired to. They felt like a childish dream. Wait, had she just said that? Had she really just used the word _childish _as a negative thing? She felt her stomach convulse as she realised she had.

The treehouse!

That's where she had to go. Sector V's treehouse. She had to go, needed to. Maybe it was the only thing that could keep her awake to what side she was truly on for just that little bit longer.

She stumbled from bed, walking into the bedpost and feeling it jab sharply at her chest, only making the rising sickness in the bed of her stomach churn. Ignoring that, she felt, fumbled her way to her desk, grabbed her flashlight, always kept close in case of, well, when the sick feeling was too much to bear.

She flipped it on, squinting until her eyes grew used to the light.

Out the window she went, clambering, shivering in the night air and onto the dewy grass below, the wet blades filling the gaps between her toes.

Walking along the streets at night was something that Amanda was pretty much used to. What with all the midnight trips to the candy store, and the.. had there been late-night missions?

As she was passing along house after house along the end of the street sector V's treehouse was on, a snag in the road caused her to trip, and the flashlight was thrown from her hand as she stuck out her palms to catch her fall. Unfortunately for Amanda, the beam of light the torch threw ended p aimed at a second-storey room in the house she was in front of. Extremely concious of the intensity of the light and what it might mean to her spontanious stroll at 2 AM, she scrabbled to retreive it and once again aim it down the sidewalk.

She kept on, flinching at every little noise, every little movement in the corner of her eye.

Once, when she was only a couple of doors away from the treehouse and the old, abandoned house it stood next to, she coul have sworn she saw someone lurking in the bushes behind her. But alas, when she turned around all she saw was the same thing she had been seeing the whole way there; bleak dark outlines of undefined shapes against the moonless sky.

Amanda was sure that no current sector V operative would be sleeping in there at that moment. Operatives had been warned against sleeping in their usual beds in their bases, as any operative who let their guard down in a place as obvious as their treehouse was a sitting duck. Today's sector V would all be curled up in their _other_ beds; at their _other_ homes, hoping not to be next.

Finally, she was there. Rickety, old, almost haunting, the gigantic structure towered above her, seeming almost to sway in the unfriendly night air.

She jumped the fence, not taking her eyes off the treehouse. Walked the final stretch of the backyard, and finally stopped at the foot of the tree. It took her a while to find the entrance, but soon enough she located the little button that opened up the trunk of the tree like an elevator, and she stepped in, silently, unceremoniously, like it was no big deal. But it was, to her.

Amanda didn't really remember what had happened after that. She had images, flashes of being in there, all the equipment still hanging there ready to use. The new sector V, as it seemed, had left most of the original 'important' rooms; the main area, the original operatives' rooms, a couple of the better lookouts and aircraft hulls, and had taken to using the lesser rooms and small add-ons for their own operations. It was like the whole treehouse was a monument, a tribute to those five operatives who had done so much for the organisation.

Then, there was the crying, crying helplessly out on the balcony, exposed to the chill of the night. She knew she was done for. She knew that this would be the last time she would look up at the full moon and and think; _How amazing are we? How unbelievably, amazingly, giantly..._ Then, she was asleep. Simple as that. And, for the first time in weeks, the nightmares didn't follow her.

Amanda awoke an hour later, to the sound of someone behind her. She knew where she was, it was one of those Kids Next Door treehouses. She didn't care. But she didn't want to be found. So, she swung over the side of the rail onto a swaying branch and began the long climb down.

_Why do those kids put these things in such hard to reach places? _she wondered.

_I could end up messing up my hair with all this climbing._

~(*)~

Abby was asleep. Peaceful, having another dream. Her. Her, and Hoagie. Playing on a playground. Kuki, and Wally and Nigel were there too. On a playground. What was that supposed to mean? Teenagers, in the middle of the night, she should add, on a child's playground. But before she could find out what happened next, she was awoken by a bright light outside her window. She sat up groggily, swung her legs over the side of her bed, an pulled back the curtain cautiously. There, she saw the girl. The same girl she had found running around the high school about a week ago. The girl she was meant to find and ask about that very incident.

Abby's first though was that she was being a bit dumb, out there, tripped over for lack of light on the pavement at -what was the time?- Two-fifteen in the morning. But then it hit her. That time she had turned up in the hallways, her and Kuki had thought that she might have been dared, pressured into skipping class. What if it was happening again? Abby could imagine it. The girl, scared and eager to gain acceptance, as the other, mean kids taunted and tested their power over her.

_Betcha you don't have the guts to go out there._

_Come on, it's not that bad!_

_Are you a baby or something?_

Of course she'd do it. And that made Abby mad. At the other kids. She had to talk to the girl. So she got out of bed, grabbed the jacket that was hanging from the handle to her closet, and tiptoed downstairs to the front door.

~~(*)~~

Once Abby had been following her for a little while, not wanting to scare her, waiting for a good time to speak up, she realised that this girl wasn't just out there so she could say she'd been out there. She was walking to get somewhere, not just wandering aimlessly and and thinking about how long she'd have to be out there before she was cool enough to be accepted.

So, Abby kept low, overtaken by curiousity, and followed behind her.

One time the girl almost noticed her. She turned around barely slower than Abby could get behind the nearest tree.

Too close. But Abby felt a shot of adrenalin as she fought to keep her breathing silent. She loved that feeling.

The girl kept walking, until she found a house. The one the local kids kept calling 'The ghost house' for some reason. The question of why this little girl might want to be here at any time, let alone the middle of the night, only fed Abby's determination to find out, so she kept up a silent march behind her.

There was a treehouse. In the backyard of the old house. A treehouse the size of... nothing she'd ever seen. It was huge, had a trunk as wide as a truck, and branches longer than a school bus. Massive.

But what was more, it was made of some strange things. She swore she could see the front of a ship nestled somewhere in there, something that looked like a telescope bigger than anything Abby thought possible, even an opening big enough to land an aircraft on. It was surreal. Impossible. Yet there it was, right in front of her.

Usually, Abby thought, something this big and... well, strange would feel intimidating, scary even, in the dim light. But it wasn't. It was almost... inviting. Almost something she wanted to smile at and visit and- it was all crazy. But all real feelings she was really having. Crazily real. Unreal reality. She didn't know, couldn't explain, but still, it felt that way. So, she moved forward once more, this time not for the sake of the girl, but for her. Because she wanted to.

She watched the girl ascend to one of the many floors of the treehouse, through an evelator. An elevator. _In _the tree. And couldn't help but sneak out after her and try opening the thing herself. She found the button the other girl had used, carefully disguised as one of the contours of the tree, and watched in sheer amazment as half of the tree slid back, showing itself to be hollow.

The little pod of an elevator was smaller than was comfortable, and Abby wondered why whoever had created it had made it that way. It wasa mostly that it was cramped at the top, low-hanging and almost a little bit claustrophobic.

The shaft began moving as soon as she was in, having to crouch earlier to avoid being pressed up against the ceiling. She felt suddenly nervous. She assumed it was fear of what this was, or what could be up there. It just felt like she was extremely wary of what would happen once the little hatch opened. It felt like forever before it actually did. What she saw when she stepped out amazed her.

The place was... like nothing she'd ever recalled seeing before. A video screen big enough for a NASA control room, couches, big, mechanical doors, openings in the wall where rope bridges could be seen, swaying in the wind, providing an access, however rickety and unstable, to other parts of the huge dwelling. Just amazing. Treehouses were never meant to be this huge, this cool, this... easy to picture yourself living in.

Then, out of nowhere, a sudden wave of dizziness poured over her. She saw spots, a couple of formations, almost faces. She saw the moon, she saw glasses. Stumbling over to one of the couches in the middle of the room, she let herself fall nect to the back of it, on her knees now, head still a buzz. A voice -no, a few- filled her ears, though she could be quite sure that it was only her who was hearing it.

_Numbuh 5! You're awake! Are you all right?_

_They got away, numbuh 5. They got you. You were hurt._

_Are you alright?_

Then, she replied, actually speaking this time, to herself, to the voices in her head.

'_Yeah baby, numbuh 5 is alright.' _

Before the room cleared, and her balance returned, she saw one image, one single picture in her mind; the moon.

Abby took a couple of steps at a time, stopping frequently to notice some new detail that she had missed before, or to make sure she was still on her feet. After a while, she grew more and more interested in the five big, metalic sliding doors in the corner, marked with the numbers one to five. What was behind them? She wanted to go, and held back at first, but then figured; what the heck? It wasn't like she was going to be shoved out of here. So, now peacefully interested, despite the little nagging voice at the back of her head that told her that one of those dizzy spells could hit her again, and the thought of the little girl all but gone, she stepped up to the door closest to her; the one marked 5. Now she just had to figure out how to open it.

~(*)~

Wally couldn't get to sleep. He didn't know why, but he just didn't feel tired. Okay, scratch that, he felt like he wanted to collapse. But still, he got that feeling that said that this would be just another sleepless night. Nothing he could do about it, so he just lay there, looking up at the ceiling. His duvet lay crumpled on the end of his bed, leaving him shivering slightly in just his boxer shorts and singlet.

Wally kept having nights like these, about once every month, always at about the same time. The last days of one month, or the first days of the next. He had figured out that these boring, tiring, loathsome nights fell on a full moon. Always a full moon. Wally didn't believe in all that hippe-psycic-magic crud, no. This.. maybe it was just co-incidence.

But what was weirder, is that on these nights, Wally had dreams. Not full-scale, images and voices, real-feeling dreams, but waking dreams, like visions and thoughts of voices, like he was playing a movie in his head.

Wally thought he was maybe going insane. Really. He worried about it often now. There were so many stories up there, stories he had no control over, that had so little to do with him, he felt like they had been wrongly placed in his head. But he felt connected to them. He just didn't know how. The stories had a mind of their own. And Wally was sure that this mind it hadwas insane. It was always focused on these five people, there were more regular characters, but it was always these five, no matter what.

They resembled people he knew. Wally wasn't overly worried about that, aside from the fact that the five people that were the main characters seemed to be based around people he barely knew.

The first guy, the one in the red sweater; he looked like Nigel.

The second resembled Hoagie; not by looks but by personality. He could tell.

The third; obviously Kuki. Cute, bubbly, pretty, energetic, the very things Wally loved about her.

The fourth was the odd one out; the short, defiant blondie was Joey all over. The only one in the group for whom he could come up with a good reason for.

The other girl, the red hat one; well, she was Abby. She had the red hat and all. And the one who always knew what to say.

Strange. All he could say.

So, he drifted off into that half-concious state and waited indifferently to see what the next almost dream would be.

_Numbuh 4, get up!_

_Yeah, you know full moons are always moonbase meeting nights!_

_We can't be late _again _because of you._

_Aw, guys! Ah'm tired! _

_Well, sleep on the SCAMPER._

_Ugh..stupid, cruddy mission noights...wish Ah_ _could just go ta sleep..._

A little boy, the Joey figure in Wally's head, dragged his feet as he left his "bed", which seemed to be in the middle of a boxing ring, for some strange reason. He didn't even wonder what a '_scamper' _was; there were too many words that didn't make sense in these dreams.

Then, skipping scenes, as his head often did, Wally came onto this:

_My fellow operatives, thank you for joining us here tonight._

_Bored..._

~(*)~ 

Abby was mesmerised, almost overwhelmed by this. Almost. She felt like she should be freaking out, wanting to leave, but part of her was strangely comfortable here. And that only worried the other part of her more. She felt sure she was asleep, but it was all too real to be a dream. She had looked at all four of the rooms, behind the sliding doors. All of them had been vastly different from one another, but still held a strange feeling of closeness, significance. The dizzy spells had returned, happening once in the hallway between the third and fourth rooms, and again just after she'd been through the last. Every time she heardd voices, and some of the time she responded, unable to control herself. It was like she was hallucinating. Should have been scary. Was almost eeirily unfrightening.

She then, after finding another of the limitless secret hallways that led here or there, ended up in a large, hollow room in the centre of the treehouse. It looked like something of a meeting room. A couple of couches aimed toward the middle, facing a small raised platform with a lectrum in the middle. Between the couches and the platform was a sort of pedestal, like something would be displayed on. Abby found herself studying this with curiousity, as if there was something actually on it.

And it happened again. Room spinning, head clouding, she fell back onto the couch closest to the metal cyllinder, letting the voices take hold.

_Uh, hi guys. I know you're probably wondering why I'm back here, after all this time..._

_I thought you weren't allowed to come back, numbuh 1?_

_Yeah, well... I had to- warn you. _

'Why are you here, Nigel? What is so bad that you had to come back? So bad that you had to break out of there and set the rest of those galactic kids on your tail?'Abby asked to no-one. To thin air. But to someone. Definitely someone. She got the feeling that she should know, know who or what or why, despite the fact that she didn't at all comprehend what was going on, let alone understand the question.

But soon, her vision returned, and she found she could control what she said once more.

She got up, heaving a deep, shuddering breath. She was tired. Exhausted. She wanted to go home. But her legs wouldn't move. She willed herself to get up but still, her body would not listen. It forced her to lie down on that couch, forced her eyes closed, and she couldn't help but obey. After all, she _was _tired... who would mind if she just...rested her eyes...just for a few minutes...

Then, black. Asleep. Soundly.

And that was when it started. When the old Abigail, the old numbuh 5, started fighting back.

**A/N: So, are you liking what I'm doing with it? I had to re-use Amanda with that bit 'cuz she was one of the only operatives that I could afford to have turn. All the rest have other parts I need them to be there for. Alright, I guess that's all for now, already working on the next chapter! (hey, I'm just as excited as you, I don't know what's gonna happen next! Sometimes I just wing it, really.**

**I may write the story, but at times, the story has a mind of its own...**

**I should really do something about that...**


	19. Ch 18, Revealed

**A/N: Here we go! Joey's finally there! That's all I amd going to say about this chapter.**

**Proceed.**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 18 - Revealed

Joey stood in the midst of one of the most important objects in the entire Kids Next Door. The code module. Well, the door to the containment unit that held the code module, anyway. Right in front of him. Huge, it made him feel like an ant standing this close. But he couldn't focus on it properly.

He was worried about Robert. Joey had always kind of suspected that he and Jamie may have been closer than met the eye, andd now he knew. His leader, after hearing the news of what had become of his... Joey didn't even know what to call them. Friends? More than that? Anyway, Robert had stopped. Stopped talking, stopped moving in any way other than necessary, and stopped registering what was going on around him. He had aqquired a glassy look in his eyes, and his breathing was slower and louder than usual, loud enough that you could almost be sure that he was trying to convince _himself_ that he still had the ability to breath.

But, as they had reached the very bottom floor of the Arctic Base, he had started talking again. Put on a little smile and started saying things like; "Wow, can't believe we're here," and "So excited to find out." There was something forced about his enthusiasm.

Yet, they stood there, about to answer the question that Joey had wondered for so long.

He was nervous. Not sure why, but he was.

~(*)~

'Anna! Where did you put my papers?' I demanded, rubbing the right side of his head. Those boys had left a couple of bruises here and there, but nothing that would stop me. Not now. he was already too close. I can already taste the victory, feel the triumph, see the defeat in the Kids Next Door's faces. It was all just a heartbeat away.

But I still needed those papers. And my stupid assistant seemed to be too busy planning a friend's _sweet 16th_ birthday party to be bothered helping destroy the Kids Next Door. But whatever, I mean, pink streamers and table cloths are more important than vital information reports anyway.

'Anna! Bring me those papers!' I persisted, louder this time. How dare she defy me? Me, Dr. Nicholas Colter? The only one (in my opinion, anyway) capable of taking the KND down for good? Ugh, no-one respects the power of the evil scientist anymore.

'Yeah, yeah, I'll be there, just hold on a minute, would you?' came the arrogant reply.

'No, not in a minute, I need those papers _now!' _I insisted, trying to remind her that she was the intern and I was the boss.

I heard her mumble something less-than-innocent, but chose to ignore that. For her sake.

She tossed the sheets on my desk, letting a couple of them skid along out of order. _Remind me to get a new assistant. Soon._

So, the Joey Beatles project had not gone to plan. It didn't matter. What would a couple of survivers be against thousands and thousands of turned operatives? He wouldn't stand a chance.

Just a few more, and they'd all be gone. Then, I swoop in and take over, and then, in a perfect world, a year from now, the world is rigged up so that a child reaches the teen-adult mindset by age three. But that would take time. Oh well, I wanted to savour every moment of my gradual victory anyway.

Just you wait and see, Kids Next Doom, you'll be mine. I will win this time.

...I'll win.

~(*)~

'Robert, are ya sure ya're up for this?' Joey asked, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder in an attempt to bring him back to reality. Robert only exhaled loudly, as if he had just been caught doing something he shouldn't and was giving up on thinking of an excuse. He shrugged.

'I don't know, Joey. I guess I kinda want to just go home and never come out of bed again. A bit,' he said solemnly. Joey nodded in sympathy.

'Ah know tha feeling,' he said, even though he wasn't completetly sure that he did. But Robert seemed determined to get into that code module and dig out the files on sector V. He took a step forward, and sighed. Joey joined him.

'Are we gonna do this?' Joey asked, eyes not leaving the giant locked metal door in front of him.

'Yep,' Robert said slowly, his gaze also locked in front of him.

'Foinding sector V and savin' tha world?'

'Yep.'

Robert entered his password. Clearway. Jamie's last name, Joey thought with a sad smile. He wondered how much his friend missed the girl. Enough to be sure he wanted to track down five ex-Kids Next Door and- wait, how were they meant to recommission them? The recommissioning module was-as far as Joey knew, destroyed ever since numbuh 0 accidentally dropped it from the top of the sector V treehouse. At least, that's what Joey had been told had happened. He suspected it was a cover for something else. But he guessed they'd cross that bridge when they came to it.

Then, once Robert had disabled all the alarms and entered all the codes, the doors slid open like curtains on a show that was just about to start. That's what it felt like to Joey, his big adventure about to begin. He'd been waiting, wondering, imagining what this moment would be like ever since he was first in his treehouse bedroom, lying there staring at the ceiling when it hit him; _who am I trying to be? What do we have to live up to? _

That was another thing. Joey missed the treehouse. All KND operatives had been warned weeks ago against sleeping in their usual treehouse headquarters, for safety. Some of the kids had even taken to sleeping with their whole team in one room, taking shifts between uneasy sleep and sitting up nervously as a lookout.

Things were tough for adult-fighting child secret agents in times like these.

But none of that mattered anymore. In his head, Joey pictured it unfolding. He saw him and Robert tracking these now teens down, saw them helping the KND once more, saw them saving the organisation after months of turmoil and months of wondering whether you were next.

This was it.

The code module was sitting in there like, Joey thought, it could have been waiting for them. Like; _oh, there you are. I was starting to think you weren't going to come. _The small round disk shone in the light, and, as they walked closer to it, pulled by its power, Joey could see his own reflection in its chrome surface. Now, all they had to do was find the file that held the names of the first sector V.

Robert seemed entranced by it, but he soon shook himself out of the state and flicked a switch on its side. A hollographic projection opened up, sweeping the room then declaring;

'Area secure. Please enter genetic material code,' in a loud, mechanical voice. Joey didn't exactly like this part. He watched Robert "extract the genetic code" from his nose and stick his finger into a slot next to the switch on the side of the small disk. The hollogram changed.

_Welcome, Soopreme Leader Numbuh 263, _appeared in big block letters on the semi-transparent display.

Robert touched icons and typed in passwords faster than Joey could keep track of. He kept a straight face, but inside, Joey knew he was feeling the same combination of nerves, excitement and anticipation deep in the pit of his stomach as himself.

Suddenly, Joey found himself staring at a list of all the exsisting sectors of the KND. All the way from the Amish sector A to the missing-for-who-knows-how-long sector Z.

Then, unexpectedly, Robert stopped. Just stopped, and looked to Joey.

'Would you like to do the honours, numbuh 404?' He said, his eyes locked on Joey's, his gaze holding both the dutiful responsibility of a mature leader and the carefree excitement of a young child. Joey smiled uncontrollably.

'Certainly, numbuh 263.'

Joey's hands were shaking. He felt little. He felt unworthy to know who these amazing agents who had saved them all so many times before he had even qualified to be a cadet. They were so close, so close that Joey wasn't even sure he could do it. His breath caught in his throat, throwing his respiration out of time. He could hear his heart in his chest as he reached out a tiny, trembling hand, extended a finger and tapped at the thin air of the hollogram.

_**File Name: Sector V (original)**_

_Sector History_

_Mission Logs_

_Timeline_

_Sector Members_

_Qualifications_

_Links_

There it was. Easy as that. The link that would take him to the names of the people he looked up to more than anyone. Except his older brother. He didn't hesitate for a second before clicking that link.

_Sector Members_

_Loading...Loading..._

_Numbuhs 1-5 of Sector V: Full names and current residences._

_Numbuh 1- Soopreme Commander of Sector V- Nigel Uno – Currently resides at 36 Sycamore street, Suburb Unknown_

_Numbuh 2- 2X4 Technology officer of Sector V- Hogarth "Hoagie" Gilligan – Currently resides at 15 Lucia road, Suburb Unknown_

_Numbuh 3- Nurse and Hamster caretaker of Sector V- Kuki Sanban – Currently resides at 12 Sycamore street, Suburb Unknown_

_Numbuh 4- Hand-to-hand combat officer of Sector V- Wallaby "Wally" Beatles – Currently resides at 10 Lucia road, Suburb Unknown_

_Numbuh 5- Second in command of Sector V- Abigail "Abby" Lincoln – Currently resides at 56 Sycamore street, Suburb Unknown_

The first thing that occurred to Joey was that something looked familiar. Without even reading it he knew that he had seen something in there before. His second thought was this, as he did a double-take while skimming down the readout;

_What the crud?! Is that really? No, it couldn't be! But it is! But it can't be! WHAT THE CRUDDY HECK AM I SEEING!?_

He froze. He was unable to move, to speak, to keep his jaw from dropping like his whole body had gone numb. He couldn't believe it. What he was seeing could not possibly be true. But there it was, right in front of him, glowing green with the artificial light from the code module. It could not be true. Had to be a mistake. But the code module didn't lie. His eyes felt like they were going to pop out of his head. He almost had to remind himself to keep breathing. His own- His own brother, numbuh 4. Wallaby Beatles, _Joey's _brother, numbuh 4. Joey was dumbstruck, still rooted to his spot, and everything else disappeared. He had been there the whole time. Joey had wondered why his brother had been so good at fighting, why he had been able to take down Dr. Colter when he had confronted them in the park. Now he knew. He had wondered why his brother had always been a naturally good aim, now he knew. He had wondered why he had never seen any baby photos of his brother. Now he knew. Then, the movement started up again. Started up in overdrive. He threw his hands up onto his head and laughed maniacally.

'Ohmigoshthisissocoolmybrothe risactuallyNumbuh4! I can't believe it! Ohmigosh, oh man, aw, dude, this is too cool!' He grabbed Robert by the shoulders and shook him hard.

'Can you believe it? I can't! It's so amazingly awesome my brother was in sector V he was in the Kids Next Door he did all that stuff he saved us from Father and from Grandfather and from- OH MY GOSH THIS IS AWESOME!' He said without taking a single breath. He didn't know what to do with himself. He ran in a circle. He felt like cartwheeling but he didn't know how. So he settled for jumping up and down like his feet were on fire. He hardly heard Robert telling him to calm down until he grabbed his arms, yanked him forward and yelled.

'Joey._ Joey._ _JOEY! _Calm down. We can't go and get your brother if you're acting like someone just gave you a dose of caffeine instead of your chicken pox shot. Just breath, okay? In..out..in..out. Better?' Joey nodded quickly.

'Can we go now? Can we find him?' He begged eagerly. Robert shook his head, seeming disappointed himself.

'No. It's too late to do it today. But I promise, as soon as I can get hold of the recommissioning module without raising any alarm, I'll pick you up and we'll go. Okay?'

Joey would have been saddened, but that wasn't possible when you were on an excitement high. He was breathing heavily and loudly, his eyes unable to stay in one spot for more than a couple of seconds.

'Okay, okay,' He managed, trying to calm himself.

'Alright.'

He and Robert left the Arctic Base, and Joey went home, knowing he was in for a night of torture trying to keep himself from letting anything slip to his brother.

His brother, numbuh 4.

His brother, the legend.

**A/N: Haha! I loved writing that! I actually got really excited myself! Joey's craziness is infectious! Now, I'm a little nervous about what you guys think of that chapter. Pen, I hope I did okay! I know you've been waiting forever to see Joey's reaction, and I hope I didn't let you down after all that waiting. What did you guys think? Tell me please!**


	20. Ch 19, A Cat and a Discovery

**A/N: Just a heads up, first part of this chapter is flashback.**

Loading...

Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 19 – A Cat and a Discovery

_March 2nd, 2008_

_5:45 PM_

'Hey guys? Have you seen Nigel?' Hoagie asked, looking to the others who were lazing around the TV room, either unenthusiastically tapping away at a videogame or flipping through and half-reading a magazine.

'Nope, not for a while. Last I saw he was out on the terrace a few hours ago,' Numbuh 5 answered, not lifting her eyes from her magazine. Things had been pretty ordinary around the treehouse after "_That Day."_

'He'll be back sometoime soon. Ya know Nigel, he's always off chasin' birds and stuff,' Numbuh 4 added, switching off the video game and heading towards the kitchen.

'He'll be back for dinner soon.'

'Maybe if you open a tin of tuna he'll come back?' Kuki chirruped. She had been just as sing-song as usual since _it_ had happened, but the rest of the team knew that she was just as torn apart inside as themselves.

Hoagie left the TV room and went out onto the terrace to look for Nigel. After they'd picked him up from the shelter, he'd come and gone, -then again, most of his kind did- but he was still theirs. He helped dull the pain they got whenever they had nothing else to think about.

The cool evening air hit Hoagie full-on as soon as he stepped outside. It swirled around his goggle-covered face, and sent a shiver down his spine. He looked around for their friend, but he was no-where to be seen. Hoagie let out a deep sigh. Things were... complicated now that they'd gone through the whole 'Galactic Kids Next Door thing'. Hoagie himself hadn't believed it was real at first. He thought it was just another splinter cell thing. Just a fake. But, oh, it was real all right.

Too real.

It made Hoagie just a little bit nervous everytime he thought about the adulthood disease. He hated to think how horrible it would be for a kid whose planet had been all but consumed by the infection. At least Nigel was here. He was always cute enough to make you smile. Even if it was only for a little while.

Hoagie heard the door click shut from behind him, and he turned to see Kuki standing there, her everpresent smile now holding an element of sympathy.

'Hey, Numbuh 2,' she greeted.

'Hey, Kuki.'

'Looking for Nigel?' She asked, her naïve tone now completely dropped.

'Mm-hm. He doesn't seem to want to come in tonight,' Hoagie frowned.

Kuki laughed silently, a mere shift of her shoulders.

'Yeah, he's like that most nights, isn't he?'

'Yep.'

Hoagie leant against the railing that bordered the terrace. If you came out in early morning you could see the sun rising right in front of you, right in the middle of your view, with the edges bordered by leaves and branches. Hoagie had built it that way. Well, not the leaf-border part, but the sunrise was definitely part of his plan. Kuki joined him at the railing, leaning her hands against the wood that was slightly splintered with age.

'Y'know what's strange, Hoagie?' Kuki asked with a loud exhale.

'What?'

'Last night I was in my room, playing with my do-you-want-sugar-with-that rainbow monkey and Mister Fluffikins, when suddenly, I thought; _aren't I too old to be playing with these things? Shouldn't I be off doing something... older? _I mean,I know we still have a while before decommissioning, but I felt like I should be, I don't know, "acting my age".'

Hoagie wasn't sure where this conversation was meant to be going, but what he did know was that Kuki had never been this serious for this long. Ever. In all the time that Hoagie had known her, which was a pretty long time.

'But then I thought, _who says I should be doing that?' _Kuki continued._ '_I like playing with my rainbow monkeys, and it's not like there's a rule that says you _have _to start doing that stuff at all. So, you know what I did?' Kuki asked, finally taking her eyes off the view of the street ahead of them, looking Hoagie in the eye in a way that made Hoagie wonder if this was actually Numbuh 3 he was talking to. She seemed so tuned in to reality, so _aware _of what was going on, this was a new side of her that Hoagie hadn't seen come out for longer than a few seconds. Everyone knew that Kuki wasn't nearly as much of an airhead as she made herself out to be, but still, it was almost unnerving to see her like this. Unnatural.

'I don't know what you did,' Hoagie said, blinking behind his yellow-tinted goggles.

'I kept playing with my rainbow monkeys, silly! Once the teaparty is really started, no-one can make you stop but you!' Suddenly, the old Kuki was back. Eyes disappeared again behind a ridiculously huge grin as she swung back and forth on her heels.

'Bye!' She called, as she skipped away, tossing something over her shoulder about "not wanting to keep Mister Fluffykins and Big Bottom Rainbow Monkey waiting."

Hoagie was left thinking about what his friend had said. Her words were simple, but somehow they held a deeper meaning. Sure, if someone had enough power, they could make you act like an adult, but they could never make you think like one. The only one who could _really _change who you are... is you.

Huh. Kuki had a few pearls of wisdom up her sleeve after all.

Go figure.

There was a rustling a little way along the branch next to Hoagie, that startled him from his thoughts. He looked over to see Nigel blinking back at him, his eyes as full and innocent as always. Hoagie smiled, and leaned to pluck the little cat up off the branch.

'What's up, Nigel?' Hoagie said, smiling as the cat nuzzled his chin. The sector's new cat was always happy to see them.

'Come on,' he said, 'I have a tin of Fancy Feast inside with your name on it.'

~(*)~

_28th November, 2014_

_3:35 PM_

Kuki half-skipped through the street, adding half a bounce in after every step.

She breathed the cooling November air, thinking about how close Winter break and christmas were suddenly.

_But that means only a few weeks until Wally leaves as well, _she thought to herself. She would miss him. She had to admit, the boy _was _kind of cute. He was always acting so tough, like he wasn't afraid of anything. But Kuki could see through that. There was something underneath, something warm, something comforting, something that Kuki seemed to know.

She didn't know what to call it. At first sight, one would label it as _"The 'L' word." _But the feeling was something more than that. Kuki felt that there was something familiar about it. Something she'd been almost waiting for. The Aussie boy had a smile that could just melt her, and the way he had stood up to Ace at the lazer tag centre...

well, Kuki knew that he and Wally were never really on 'good' terms. But she'd never expected what had happened today.

It had all started when Wally had been called to Coach Barns' office at lunch. Kuki hadn't meant to eavesdrop, but she couldn't help catching a snippet of conversation as she walked past, and she just _had_ to stay to figure out what was going on.

'Beatles, I'm very disappointed in you.'

'Coach, Ah didn't do any of that stuff! Someone's messin' 'round with somethin'! Ah swear, coach. I. Didn't. Do. It,' Wally persisted.

'I would like to believe you, Beatles. But mister Kidd has witnesses that say you were involved with almost all of these little 'drinking' incidents. I'm sorry, but I can't have a team captain who lacks the self-control to know right from wrong. I'm afraid you're off the team, Wally.'

'Look, to be honest, Ah couldn't care less abou' tha team. Stuff the team. But, Ah'm telling you, Ah wasn't involved in _any _way in _any_ of that stuff!' Wally was standing now, arms tense as he leaned down on the desk, looking Coach Barns in the eye.

'Look, Beatles, I'm going to level with you here. I don't think you did it. Anyway, I would like to think that you didn't. But, your past record combined with Kidd's accusation make your case a very hard side to ague for.' The coach had sounded sincere.

'Whot's on that record?' Wally asked, knowing the answer.

'A couple a' tardies and a few counts for reckless behaviah. But Ah have _nevah _done anything like whot Ace says Ah did. Ah may not be one ta follow rules, but Ah'm not _that _kind of kid!' Wally seemed frantic to prove that he was innocent of whatever crime Ace had pinned on him.

'Ah betcha those witnesses ah fakes. All of 'em. Probably just more of Ace's cronies.'

And with that, Wally had stormed out of there, looking for the boy (who was now doomed beyond all help) who had gotten him kicked off the team and, more importantly, scarred his permanent record with crimes he didn't commit.

No-one knows exactly what happened after that, but Ace had ended up in the nurse's office ten minutes later with a broken nose and a few chipped teeth.

And that was a mark Wally didn't mind having on his personal record.

Kuki was about to round the corner when she got the feeling that someone was watching her. She stopped dead in her tracks.

'Hello?' She called, slowly turning around in a full circle. She didn't see anyone, but she still had the strange niggling at the back of her mind that just wouldn't go away. Uneasily, she turned around to keep on her way.

And there, sitting in the middle of the footpath as if it had just manifested out of thin air, was a small, black-and-white cat.

Kuki almost jumped out of her skin.

'Wah! Oh, hey, kitty. What are you doing?'

She got an innocent blink in return.

'Hm.'

Kuki sidestepped the cat, well, tried to anyway, but the cat just moved into her path. It looked up to her, as if trying to catch her eye, then took a few quick catsteps towards the street in the opposite direction to where Kuki needed to go.

The cat looked old, and there were a couple of signs that he'd been in a few fights; a torn ear and a scar running from the middle of his cheek down to his lower jaw showed that he'd had it tough.

'I don't have any food, kitty,' Kuki said more firmly, moving away towards her house. But the cat entwined itself in her legs, and she stumbled over it, barely regaining her balance in time to remain on her feet.

The cat was still looking up at her, like he was expecting something.

'You want me to follow you, kitty-cat?' Kuki said. The cat meowed, as if in response. That was a little creepy.

'Okay, fine. I'll follow you. Where are we going?' She took a step in the direction the cat had stepped before, and it quickly caught up, taking the lead.

She followed the cat down a few streets, all the while fully conscious of how strange it was that she was taking directional advice from a cat. Oh, well. She didn't have to be home for another half an hour.

The cat was, Kuki noticed, not any ordinary cat. It kept to the path, ignoring any and all climbable fences along the way, and every few minutes, it looked back behind it, to check that Kuki was still there. It was treating her like she was its owner.

Kuki had always liked cats. She, where everyone else critisised them for a) Being responsible for the untimely demise of their rabbit, b) their un-affectionate, I'm-in-charge-and-that's-that attitude, or c) claimed that they were "dog people" and therefore couldn't possibly like cats, she instead admired their grace, and dignity, and above all, their huge adoreble-ness. If Kuki ever got a cat, she would probably end up letting run the house.

Then, the cat stopped. Just stopped, and sat down in the middle of the pathway. Kuki had to stumble to avoid stepping on it. She looked at it, then across to the place he'd stopped. The old abandoned house on Jackson street. The one all the kids said was haunted, with the huge tree out the back. It certainly brought a strange feeling out in the pit of Kuki's stomach. Strange, foreboding feelings. Kuki looked down at the cat, wondering why he would bring her to a place like this and not the pet store, or somewhere else where cat food -or any food- was readily available. The cat simply stared back at her, almost expectantly. _Well... _it seeme to say, _aren't you going to go in? _

'Uh... sorry, kitty-cat, but I think you must have me mistaken for someone else.'

But the cat still didn't leave. It looked at the house, at her, then with a small _mew -_a possible '_Alright then, I'll __show__ you,'- _it headed off around the side path, towards the back yard of the house.

Kuki had never noticed just how _huge _the tree out the back was. It towered over her, forcing her to tilt her head right back to take in its whole ginourmous size. But there was something else she hadn't noticed.

The tree was a treehouse. Not just any treehouse, I mean, it had half a _cruise ship _in it! There were bits and pieces, terraces and little wooden box-shaped rooms, as well as huge timber arches and ramps curling around the beyond-the-reach-of-the-word-thick trunck, and an absolutely massive telescope that Kuki swore could have been used to count the number of red dust particles on Mars. How had she not seen this before? The hugeness of it, how had she missed it? In all her life living here, she must have walked past the house hundreds of times, and yet had no idea that there was a treehouse straight out of a child's imagination right behind it! She thought about it, as confused as she was impressed by it. She hadn't really looked for it, she realised. It hadn't really mattered to her, and she's kind of ignored it altogether. But not anymore.

Oh no, not anymore.

Suddenly, a strange urge to _climb _the tree washed over Kuki. She wanted to see what it was like on the very top branch. How could you _not _want to see if a spectacular treehouse like this had a view to match it? She smiled to herself, as she realised that for some reason, she knew that she wasn't leaving this place without first climbing that tree. It was like this was a place that she loved with her whole heart, that this place was tagged with the memories of the childhood she had never known. But, she couldn't possibly know this place, she felt sure. But somewhere, somewhere deep down, she knew that she was just saying that to cover the fact that she _knew _this place. From this lifetime, or one way, way before it.

The cat had gotten the same idea as her. As she slipped out of her thoughts and back into the backyard, she saw him at her head height, still looking at her with eyes that were all too aware.

'Move over, kitty. I'm coming up with you.'

Kuki had been climing for at least ten minutes, and was barely two-thirds of the way up to the nearest platform of the treehouse. The cat had stopped following her a while back, but she still caught glimpses of him here and there.

The leaves brushed past her face as she again wondered how this could feel so normal. She was at least sixty feet in the air, and she should have been terrified, if not pulling out her cell phone to call the fire department to get her down. But she was perfectly calm. It felt like she was climbing towards something important. Not something scary important, like a school exam, but something good important, like the podium where she would receive her high school diploma. Something like that.

Then, she was there. It came out of nowhere, the balcony had blended in with the tree and evaded her attention until now.

She hauled herself up unto it, sighing deeply. Unfortunately, the view was obstructed by the thick leaves and boughs of the tree swaying in the early evening breeze. She thought vaguely that she should be heading home soon, but it was so cool being up here, she didn't want to leave. She looked down, but couldn't see the full height she'd climbed for, again, the foliage covered it up. The leaves were like a little bubble, a forcefield that covered her from every side.

A little _pat-pat _turned her head, and she saw the old cat jump up beside her from the branch below. Kuki was slightly unsettled as she realised that the little feline had actually been following her, out of sight, the whole way up. She'd bet anything that if she had had second thoughts about climbing up, that cat would have been right next to her in seconds to say otherwise.

Again, the cat put on its _I need you to follow me _act, alternating between taking a few steps towards the rest of the treehouse, towards the middle of the tree, and walking back to her and rubbing himself against her affectionately.

'Alright, alright, I'll go with you. This had better be good.' She said, smiling to herself as she realised she was actually seriously _talking _to the cat.

The inside of the treehouse was even more amazing than the exterior. TVs, couches, huge, metal doors, it was surreal. Like a dream. But that wasn't the thing that shocked her the most.

'Abby?'

**A/N: Hey! So, did you like that bit? I'm sorry for the cliffhanger (another one, yes) but I just can't help myself! When I leave a cliffhanger, all through the next day or so until I start writing the next chapter, ideas will just come to me! (Okay, so most of them are terrible or really far-fetched, but some of them work) Anyway, I hope you liked the whole Nigel-cat thing. That's something that I wanted to do right from the start of the story. I just like it. I dunno why. So, that's chapter 19! OMG, that means next week is the twentieth chapter! Yay! And that _also _means that next chapter will be extra-special, if you know what I'm talking about... ;)**


	21. Ch 20, The Return to Glory

**A/N: Hello everyone! 20th chapter! YAY! **blows on party horn** Happy 20th anniversary everyone!**

**Okay, this is it! The big one! I'm sorry I'm a bit late, I just wanted to make this one extra special. Okay, I'm not going to delay you any further.**

**READ! :D**

Loading...

Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 20 – The Return to Glory

Joey was bored. Restless, fidgety, and bored. He hadn't slept in at least thirty-six hours, and was having trouble concentrating on the blackboard the teacher wasa writing on. He found himself zoning out every now and then for a few minutes, snapping bak to reality to find himself slumped on his desk, with either the clock ticking away like a time bomb desperate to go off, or the scornful glare of Mrs. Brennan telling him off... again.

It had been absolute _torture _at home, ever since he found out. He still got goosebumps whenever he thought about it. Which was a _lot. _Joey had had to relent to leaving the dinner table early and putting himself to bed in order to keep his mouth shut.

There were a few close calls, walking past Wally- Numbuh 4- his brother in the hallways. He gritted his jaw as tight as it would go, and on more than one occasion, he had to literally bite his tongue and clench his fists to the point of breaking skin just to keep his composure. The feeling was something Joey had never experienced before. It started low, that excited buzz in is chest, almost as if it were trying to squeeze the words out of him. Then, it rose to his throat, like a rising tide of words that, once started, would not stop. Then, once the feeling was done constricting his throat, it moved on to pestering his head, making it swirl with giddy anticipation. It made him want to just open his mouth and let the noise roll out. Even as he lay in bed, looking up at the ceiling, wide awake and bored to death, he was seriously considering gagging and chaining himself to the bed, to avoid any unwanted sleepwalking mishaps.

But, as it turned out, he never got to the point where that would be a problem.

That is to say, he never fell asleep.

He was just about to nod off, just about to leave the world of long division that was too blurry around the edges to focus on, when the pencil resting limply in his right hand began pulsing with a bright red light.

Joey was wide awake within two seconds.

And he knew what to do.

He shot a quick glance left and right, checking that the coast was clear, then, reaching for the underside of his desk, found the little knot in the wood. To everyone else, it was merely a chip in the wood, something natural, and it did nothing remotely interesting. But, to a Kids Next Door operative, it was a highly-complex fingerprint scanner that would allow a quick and effective escape from the classroom if the situation arose.

Pressing his finger against the dent in the old wood, the floor underneath Joey's chair gave way, and Joey was dropped into a chute that would take him to where Robert was no-doubt waiting for him, his presence in class replaced by a robotic stand in.

The trip through the tunnel was a lot like a slide in a funhouse. Those tube-shaped ones that twist and turn so much that you end up almost forgetting which way is up. It was stomach-turning at the best of times, but today, when Joey's insides were already muddled up and tossed around from the physical effort of keeping his secret, the ride made him feel queasy and eager to get off.

The slide let out way off in the back of the schoolyard, behind the Oak trees and beyond the reaches of the teachers' cold yet close watch. Joey was all a mess. His eyes were tired and sagged just slightly with his sleeplessness, his hair was ruffled out of its natural low fringe, instead hanging all over the place from being jostled about on the slide. He looked like he was in need of a shower and a good nights rest (and a comb), but there was no time for that now that he was about to meet his hero, and get to see his brother as _the _Numbuh 4 once more.

Robert met him at his exit to the tunnel. He stood there, gripping his clipboard so tight that his knuckles had turned white, and a huge, infectious smile that caught onto Joey straight away on his face. Joey felt a little pang of optimism; this was the first time Joey had seen his leader smile in almost four months.

'Are you ready?' Robert asked, evidence in his tone that suggested that he, too was holding back a squeak of excitement.

'Dude, Ah was ready two days ago. Ah _you _ready?'

'Too ready, Joey my man. _Too_ ready.'

Joey paused for a second, wondering what had caused Robert to say that.

'You really miss Jamie, don't you?'

A deep sigh. There were a lot of them around lately.

'Yup. A heap.'

'Well, let's go quickly, then.'

'Okay.'

'Who first?'

Robert looked at him, aware of how big this was not just for them, but for everyone, all KND operatives now and in future. This would go down in history as, depending on the outcome, either the smartest or the dumbest idea in history.

'Thought we could take it from the top,' Robert started, 'and start with Numbuh 1.'

Joey pictured going through the procedure, and something occurred to him. What person would willingly go along with a bunch of kids and let them tell you that they were part of an organisation of kids dedicated to bringing justice to children worldwide and that they were once part of the best team known to that organisation and -you get the picture-?

'Won't we need backup? Y'know, in case they... break for it?' Joey asked, eyebrows creasing a little.

'Taken care of,' Robert said, obviously proud of the fact that he'd thought of pretty much everything. 'I thought the rest of your sector could tag along with us as well. We're going to pick them up now. Oh- if that's okay with you, that is.'

'Oh... okay.'

And so, the duo set off, first to make a stop at the rest of the classrooms the members of the current sector V were trapped in, and then to the high school where they would find their heroes.

_Numbuh 1, 1130, 29th November, 2014_

'And so, if we square the values of angles A and B, we know that the sum of these values will be the same as the square...'

The teacher droned on. Nigel was listening, but only taking in half of what she was saying.

He had had another dream last night.

This time, he had been somewhere up in what he thought was a spaceship. He was looking out the window, out at all the stars. A little blue dot floated far, far off, and he had felt a yearning for that blue dot, a bond that was being tugged to the point of breaking. He looked away from the window, and as he turned around, he realised that he was in an almost boarding school-style room. A drab grey bed had Nigel once again longing for his own union jack Duvet cover. A desk stood in the corner, with a bunch of files sprawled out on it, a lamp shining accusingly onto them from one side. Nigel walked over to the table, looking over the papers sadly. Like they meant something horrible for him and those he loved. He thought of a few people; some he recognised, some he didn't. But all of them conjured the same feeling of; I miss you. And it could be my fault if you get hurt.

And all that emotion, all that homesickness that Nigel could not explain, caused something to snap.

Before he even knew what he was doing, he had snatched the files off the desk and grabbed a small case by the side of the bed. Running over to the door, he keyed in a code to a pannel on the side and waited impatiently while it opened.

Five minutes later, he was in a ridiculously impossible spacecraft, in the middle of space, hurtling towards that blue dot, with sirens screaming at him from inside and alarms blaring away behind him.

Nigel had woken that night, after a mere hour and a half of sleep, knowing that was all he was going to get.

So now, he was here, wishing that there was some way he could escape class.

Well, Nigel was sitting there, slouching in his desk with his head propped up on his hand, when the loud _beep! _of the PA system caused him to jolt with surprise, much to the amusement of the kids in the desks around him.

_'Could -um, Nigel Uno please report to- uh, to Administration... immediately.' _the person on the other side of the speaker said, and Nigel wasn't sure, but he thought he heard a twinge of nervousness in their voice.

As a reflex, Nigel found himself running through everything he'd done in the past week, trying to think of anything that might have gotten him in trouble as he slowly rose from his desk and walked towards the door.

The walk to the office was lonely. Only a few seniors wandered the halls, on free period, and as always, they were pretending that all students younger than they were did not exsist. That made walking the hallways feel like walking through a movie. Unnoticed, unimportant, and for all they cared, non-exsistant.

He was almost to the main office, at the front of the school, when he thought he heard something behind him. A whisper, something that sounded a bit like a child.

He stopped, and looked around for where the noise might have come from.

This time, he definitely heard someone talking.

'_Darn it! Numbuh 202, you idiot, now he's heard us!' _

Alarm bells went off in Nigel's mind. the feeling of being watched, being followed, was somehow not so much scary, but more concerning. Like something that had to be fixed, not something that was going to be nerve-wracking.

'_Should we just grab him, Numbuh 121?'_

Nigel found himself unsure of what to do. He didn't know whether to run, to fight or to try to call someone. So, he pretty much just stood there.

'_Oh geez, you're lucky he's still there! Just- shoot him with the sleeping gas and let's go.'_

Wait a minute, _sleeping gas? _

But before Nigel could do anything, he was already swarmed with a white mist, and he was slowly drifting off...

_'Numbuh 1, you realise that when this war is over, there are going to be people trying to catch you, right?'_

_'Yeah, you'll be decommissioned the second they find you!'_

_'I know. I thought about that before I left the space station. But I had to warn you. Nobody up there was going to do anything! They were going to just let the adults attack, and if they had, you would probably be under the influence of Chemical Z2A already.'_

_'You're gonna have ta go into hiding!'_

_'I know, I know. But it was all worth coming back. I swear, seeing your faces again... I'm just glad to be home.'_

Blurry shapes started to sway around Nigel's vision. He had the feeling that he was moving. People were talking, above him. He was lying down, facing a bright white ceiling, fluroescent lights glaring at him, making his eyes hurt. The shapes moved, swayed, then finally, slipped into focus.

'So what do we do from here, Numbuh 263?'

'Sh! He's waking up...'

Nigel's eyes flickered open, and he groaned groggily as the light from the lightglobes overtook his sight.

Once his eyes had adjusted to the harsh lighting, Nigel sat up slowly, his limbs tired and heavy. What he saw astounded and confused him.

'K-kids?' He managed to stumble. The four or five little figures in front of him took a step back, as if giving him space, or maybe nervous that he would try to break for it.

For a while, no-one spoke. There was a stiff silence, as the children studied Nigel like he was a wax figure in a museum, and Nigel took in the appearances of these kids.

They all looked to be around ten years old; maybe some a bit older, or a bit younger.

There were five of them in front of Nigel, with one over in another corner, operating what looked to be a steering wheel. A _steering _wheel? Where _was _he? Why had these kids knocked him unconcious and dragged him aboard what looked to be a spaceship from a far-fetched science -fiction comic?

'W-what am I doing here?' he forced himself to say. The kids just looked at him, as if they had no answer. For some reason, Nigel wasn't surprised at that. He wouln't have been surprised if no-one knew why he was there.

Finally, one of them spoke up.

'Okay, Nigel-'

'You know my name?'

'Uh, yeah. Anyway, Nigel, we... okay, I don't know exactly how to tell you this-

'Is this about all those dreams I've been having?'

'Dreams? You've had dreams? Wait, stop. Focus-'

'Do you know what happened to me when I was a kid?'

'Nigel! Will you let me finish?' One kid, who looked a little older than the others, said, looking at him with a slight int of sympathy, as well as- something like amazement.

'Oh. My. Gosh! I cannot _believe _that this is _really _Numbuh-'

A little girl started to say something, bouncing up and down on her heels, before another, more serious looking girl clapped a hand over her mouth, stopping her before she could say anything else.

'Sh! Numbuh 303, wait until he actually _knows what you are talking about,' _the girl hissed, speaking through gritted teeth as though that would stop Nigel from hearing. But he had heard what the first little girl was starting to say. Suddenly, he felt dizzy with realisation. Something was pushing, pushing from underneath his usual brain. There was something there.

'W-wait. Wait a minute. What were you going to say?' Nigel asked, fighting to keep himself from zoning out completely. He got up from the stretcher-like bed, standing up to keep himself alert.

The children.

The outlandish vechiles.

The _Numbuhs._

It was all starting to come together.

'What, me? I was only going to say that you're Numbuh 1.'

And that did it. Nigel was fell to the floor as if shot down by an invisible bullet.

It all came back.

Everything.

Everything from the cadet graduation, to all the cake missions, to the war, to leaving, to running away, to those few months as a fugitive, to the capture and the decommissioning.

Everything.

He felt sick.

He felt like his head was going to burst.

Information overload.

Those people. All those people he thought he had never known, they were there the whole time.

And suddenly, those four people. Hoagie, Kuki, Wally and Abby. They weren't Hoagie, Kuki, Wally and Abby anymore.

They were his team.

And he was their leader.

From that moment, he was no longer Nigel Uno.

He was Numbuh 1, Numbuh 1 of the Kids Next Door once more.

Nigel had vitually tuned out of reality, when he heard someone calling his name. Not his Nigel name, his Numbuh 1 name. It felt good, like a lost-then-found toy that he was playing with for the first time in years.

'N-Numbuh 1? Is that... you?'

Numbuh 1 stood up, as if just checking that he was, in fact, still able to do so. He looked to where the voice was coming from, and saw the brown haired boy from before, looking up at him hopefully, his expression of awe and anticipation matching that of everyone else in the room's.

Instantly, Nigel recognised the helmet that this boy wore. It reminded him of Rachel- uh, Numbuh 362.

'You- you're a Soopreme Leader, aren't you?'

The boy stopped, apparently stunned by Nigel's words. Then, he broke into a smile bigger than anything Numbuh 1 had ever seen.

'Boys and Girls, Numbuh 1 has returned!' He yelled triumphantly. That resulted in a cheer from all the other kids. And Numbuh 1 couldn't help it -he was himself again!-; he beamed from ear to ear as well.

Then, something came to his mind.

'Why am I back?' he asked. 'What's happening to the KND?'

And that's how the entire story had begun. The boy, Numbuh 263, Nigel found out, told him everything, with little add-ons from the rest of the current Sector V here and there. And Nigel was amused to see Joey Beatles as a Kids Next Door operative, following in the footsteps of his older brother.

One thing he noticed, all through the story, was that all of the kids (spare the pilot, obviously) never took their eyes off him. They all looked at him constantly, acting as if he might disappear if he looked away. He knew him and his team were sort of famous around the KND, but were they that well known?

Numbuh 1 knew that this situation was dire; it had to be if they had relented to reommissioning past operatives. But he had never expected something this bad. From the situation report, Numbuh 1 figured exactly what was going on; he knew that Colter was back, but he made the decision to wait until they had finished with this whole recommissioning buisiness. He didn't want to ruin these kids' moment. Numbuh 1 knew how amazing it felt to have someone so close to you be such a big figure in Kids Next Door history. He had gone through that with Numbuh 0-uhm, his father.

But one thought remained with him the whole way through the breifing of the situation; he just wanted to get his team back.

So when the story was over, he looked at each one of the eager young operatives in front of him, and said one thing;

'Let's go get the team back together.'

'Wait!' He heard a voice from behind him. He turned to see Lucy, Numbuh 121, the leader of the current Sector V looking up at him, holding in her hands, nothing other than his own black sunglasses.

'I thought you would want these back. They were left at our treehouse. In your room.'

Nigel took the glasses, smiling at the girl, before sliding them on, feeling them slip back into their place once more.

'Okay, _now _we're ready to get going.'

_Numbuh 2, 1245, 29__th__ November, 2014_

Hoagie was meant to be eating his lunch. Instead, he was finicking over the final touches on his now completely tricked out remote control airplane. Now, it could do more than just fly. It could take high-resolution photo and video recordings, go almost three times as fast, operate under a GPS, and there was a neat little grappling hook that let him pick things up from all the way across a football field.

He was just about to start the calibration for the homing device when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a little white piece of paper slide under the door to the AV club room he was in. Curious, he walked over an picked it up, reading with confusion the messily-scrawled text on one side.

_Hoagie,_

_I need you to meet me behind the gym._

_Now._

No clue as to who had sent it or why.

Hoagie smiled a little.

This should be interesting.

And Hoagie had always liked mysteries. He considered himself a detective of sorts.

Though if everyone else had a say in it, he was less a detective and more of a wannabe Sherlock Holmes.

So, Hoagie left the AV room, and headed for the back of the school, and to the gymnasium.

When he got there though, he was in for a big surprise.

Nigel, and a bunch of kids.

He stopped dead in his tracks as soon as he saw them, wondering vaguely if he was seeing things.

'N-Nigel?' Hoagie frowned in utter confusion, trying to piece together a scenario in which this could possible make sense.

None came to mind.

'Hello, Hoagie. Uhm, do you wanna come over here?' Nigel said, looking somewhere between awkward, happy and one other thing that Hoagie couldn't quite manage to put his finger on. But he knew one thing for sure; he was _not _going to follow a person, surrounded by _kids _for some reason, after he had left a slightly creepy note under his door asking to meet him in a place that was meant to be out of bounds.

'Uhh, no, thanks. I'm really... okay here, thanks,' he blurted out, taking an involuntary step backwards.

'Okay,' Nigel began. 'Let me rephrase that. Hoagie, as your _friend, _I need you to trust me. It will all make sense soon. Just follow me.'

What was strange to Hoagie was that part of him actually wanted to go. Where the other half (probably the sane half) wanted to call the police, or an insane asylum, for that matter, part of him, somewhere inside, wanted to follow Nigel. And the expression that showed a determined despiration in Nigel's eye, as well as the pleading, hopeful faces of all the kids around him made him, for reasons he didn't even quite understand himself, say;

'O-okay. Alright. I'll go with you. But where are we going?'

Nigel smiled, as did the six children who stood around him, and who were now, walking up to Hoagie and leading him in the direction of the school gates. As for the question he had posed, Nigel had only one answer;

'You'll know when we get there.'

Five minutes of walking through trees in the park outside the school fences later, Hoagie found himself and the rest of the people he had been talked into following, standing in front of what he thought could have been the coolest thing he had ever seen. It looked like an old school bus with jet wings, two big propeller engines on each side, and the words _SCAMPER II _painted along the sides. Images of the strange machines that Hoagie had been conjuring up from his mind lately cam to mind instantly. He knew that this could easily have been one of them. And now, he knew that this whole buisiness had something to do with that.

'N-Nigel? Why are we here? What is this thing?' He said, not taking his eyes off the huge aircraft in front of him. He wanted to touch it, to see inside it, find out how it worked, and, more than anything, he wanted to take it for a spin.

'We're just going to use this little thing on you, Hoagie. It will... help you _remember _some stuff.'

Hoagie reluctantly pulled his gaze away from the huge plane and turned to face Nigel, only to see him holding what looked like a wooden box with a handle poking out one end.

'Okay, Numbuh 2, let's see if you can still fly a SCAMPER.'

And that did it. He wanted to signal Nig-Numbuh 1 to stop, but it was already too late.

In a flash, everything came back. He remembered his first tool kit, the first time he flew on his own, he remembered Numbuh 5 -the girl of his dreams, even now- and he remembered their moments alone. Everything shocked him, from the fact that Abby had been his girlfriend -_she _had actually gone out with _him!-_ to the realisation that Tommy had, in fact, known all along.

Before he knew it, he was on the floor, head pounding with all the pressure. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to get up, but his legs wouldn't work for some reason. It all made sense. The dreams, that horrible, constant familiarity, all the things that seemed out of place, they all suddenly clicked.

And then, he was unconscious.

When he woke up, the first thing he saw was a little girl with curly red hair looking at him curiously. He blinked a few times before sitting up, looking around, trying out the world through his own -Numbuh 2's- eyes again.

'Uhm, guys? Numbuh 2's awake,' the little girl said, hopping down off a chair she had been standing on.

There was the sound of multiple pairs of feet walking over to him. Then, Numbuh 2 realised that he was _himself _again;

'Numbuh 1! I'm me again! I'm Numbuh 2, and- and you're Numbuh 1, and... and I'm back!' He yelled, jumping off the bench he had been lying on and practically bouncing around the room.

'Not just yet you're not,' Numbuh 1 interjected, putting a hand out to stop Numbuh 2's uncontrollable bouncing.

'Numbuh 202, I believe you took the liberty of bringing along one of Numbuh 2's things?'

A little boy, aged around nine or ten, emerged from the cluster of kids, holding something in his hands that made Numbuh 2's heart miss a beat.

His cap.

His aviator's cap and his goggles. Right there. After all these years.

The little boy spoke, his voice nervous and his face showing almost disbelief that Numbuh 2 was actually there.

'H-hi, Numbuh 2,' he said, face reddening. 'I- you've always been my hero, and I- I brought you your cap and your goggles from the Kids Next Door museum. I thought you might want them...'

Numbuh 2 looked down on the little boy, a warm feeling rising from his chest.

'Hey, thanks, kid,' he said, taking the cap and goggles and placing them back where they belonged.

'Okay, so someone tell me what's going on,' Hoagie demanded, ready to get down to buisiness now that he was back to the way he should be.

Half an hour and a lot of explaining later, he knew exactly what was going on. He and Nigel had shared a lot of looks during the storytime session, and somehow, had non-verbally decided to put off telling the kids what the two of them knew for at least a while.

They were about to leave again, and had fired up the SCAMPER II, when Numbuh 202 reported a problem.

'Guys? The SCAMPER's acting up. I can't seem to get it to switch into gear.'

Everyone at that moment literally looked straight to Numbuh 2. He smiled.

Back where he belonged once more.

Numbuh 202 didn't mind giving up his position as pilot for the moment. He was awe-struck at getting the chance to watch his idol in action.

Hoagie slipped into the pilot's seat, feeling instantly comfortable. His hands instincually found their positions on the control board, and he knew eactly what he had to do net.

'Okay,' he said, giving a mischeivious smirk behind his goggles.

'Let's see what this baby can do.'

**A/N: Did ya like it? Huh? Huh? Did ya? But seriously, I hope you did. It was really fun to write, and I just had Hoagie's face in the last part in my head the whole time. **

**They're ba-ack! Was it over the top? was it not enough? Please tell me! Okay, that's all for now.**

**G'night! or G'morning! or G'd'evening! or Good somewhere in the middle!**

**-Numbuh 25**


	22. Ch 21, The Return to Glory II

**A/N: Not much to say except enjoy!**

**Kai2: Request granted :D**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

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Team

Chapter 21 – The Return to Glory, Part II

_Numbuh 3, 1334, 29th November, 2014_

'Kuki?' Isabel Tabbs called out, walking over to where Kuki stood near the piano in the Drama hall, chewing the end of a pencil and frowning in concentration.

'Bella! What's going on?'

'One of the set backgrounds has a tear in it,' Isabel said, obviously stressing out. There was only two days until the opening night of the school musical, and everyone was starting to freak a bit.

'Oh. Uh, which one?' Kuki asked, lowering the clipboard and taking a deep breath.

'The castle scene. I think we might be able to patch it up, but we're gonna need some more black paint.' Isabel was usually the first one to freak in the days before the show. With her, if something wasn't perfect, it was never going to be.

'Okay. Can you send Drake down to the art room to get some? Oh, and on the way can you get someone to move the Beast's costume down to the dressing rooms?'

Bella nodded hurriedly, before quickstepping off.

Kuki was overwhelmed. Leadership really wasn't her thing. She didn't like giving orders, and she _especially _didn't like getting mad if they were done improperly or not done at all. A lot of the time she just wished that someone would come in and takeover for her.

She'd be happier to follow directions than give them.

Kuki was about to go back to running through the list of seemingly endless things that needed doing, when someone knocked on the back door of the hall.

_Funny, _she thought, _no-one ever uses that door._

She stood there for a minute, thinking that maybe someone had bumpe the door with something, or that the noise had come from somewhere else, but after about twenty seconds, whoever it was out there knocked again.

Kuki walked over to the door and opened it, only to see Nigel and Hoagie looking back at her, smiling awkwardly.

'Oh. Hey guys!' She greeted. 'What are you doing here?'

The two just stared, almost like they were trying to think of an answer on the spot.

'Uh, well- uhm, we- we came to tell you that... uh, that there's a.. uhm-' Hoagie began, his face reddening. Kuki noticed that instead of his usual yellow sunglasses, he had on some sort of a pair of goggles in the same shade. She added that to the list of things to wonder about this whole situation. But while Hoagie's voice apparently failed him, Nigel swooped in and took over, he also donning a new pair of glasses; black, with a couple of scratches here and there.

'There's a kitten stuck up a tree and we came to see if you could help get it down!' He said quickly. Both boys let out a big sigh.

'_Nice save, man,' _Hoagie whispered, too quiet for Kuki to hear.

Being her nice (albeit a little gullible) self, Kuki couldn't just let this little kitten stay up there in a tree, no matter how many things needed doing around here.

'Oh no! Well come on, don't just stand there! Show me where the kitten is!'

Hoagie and Nigel started a bit, then headed off towards the park behind the school. Though Kuki had a lot of questions about a) why they were out there, b) why they couldn't have gotten the kitten themselves, and c) why they had come to her, she liked to give people the benefit of the doubt, so skipped along happily behind them, humming to herself.

She stopped, however, when she saw the huge thing in the middle of a clearing in the trees. It was some sort of spaceship version of a bus. Everything stopped.

'Um, guys?' she said, all the questions and strange little details of the two boys' sudden appearance came hurtling back.

'There _is _no kitten, is there?'

Nigel and Hoagie both looked at each other, obviously caught in the act.

'She's got us there,' Hoagie admitted.

'Okay. So there is no kitten,' Nigel said. 'But there is something important that we need to... just come inside.'

Kuki was a little suspicious. Just a little. She knew Nigel and Hoagie were friends, but she knew that this was not normal. Anyone would.

'Why?' she stated plainly, more demanding it than asking it.

'Kuki, listen. We know what you're feeling, we were too. But you'll understand soon enough. Please, just come on,' Nigel pleaded. And Kuki, looking at both him and Nigel, had to relent.

'Alright fine then. But this is kind of weird. You know that, right?'

Hoagie almost laughed.

'Weird doesn't cover half of it, Kuki.'

Inside the ship, Kuki further confused to find six kids, what looked like a stretcher bed, and a whole airplane style control board. Now, she was half convinced she was either dreaming or on one of those TV prank shows.

'Kuki, you might want to lie down for this,' one of the kids said, gesturing to the bed. 'This is kind of... big.'

Kuki, deciding to just go with the flow, hopped up onto the bed, looking over to where the two boys who led her here were looking at a little wooden Jack-in-the-box. Though they were speaking quietly, she could just make out what they were saying.

_'I'm telling you, Numbuh 1, you did it without this thing, I did it without this thing, Numbuh 3 probably can too.' _Hoagie pushed, looking between the Jack-in-the-box and Nigel alternately.

_'I don't know. I mean, using the module is probably less... uncomfortable.' _Nigel looked concerned, but then, both of them did.

_'True, but it just won't feel right, having the two of us come back naturally and everyone else mechanically. Y'know?'_

Nigel made a thoughtful _hmm _sound, before finally giving in.

'_Alright. I guess it wouldn't be right if we were the only two who didn't use it. Okay then.'_

_'Thanks, Numbuh 1.'_

The two made their way back to the table Kuki was sitting on, smiling a little, everything-is-fine smile.

'_How do we do this?' _Nigel whispered to Hoagie out of the corner of his mouth, still looking straight ahead.

'_Just follow my lead,' _Hoagie replied, before adressing Kuki.

'Hey, Numbuh 3,' he said.

Kuki's head pounded and her stomach churned.

'Numbuh 3, we need you to make a run to the candy store,' Nigel supplied.

'W-what?' Kuki asked, her voice seeming distant and not her own. Things were pushing her, tossing her around from the inside. Something rose from deep in the recesses of her mind, and at the same time, something was rising from deep inside her stomach.

'Someone get her a sick bag!' She heard someone yell, someone somewhere far away. Her vision was tunneling, and she was losing touch with her senses.

_'Numbuh 3, your Rainbow Monkey's are getting in the way of my work again.'_

Suddenly, everything that had been pushing, all the little feelings poking around just exploded. Images and voices rolled out in front of her eyes, behind her eyes, they surrounded her, images of missions, of friends and of enemies, images of everything she used to know.

Five minutes later, she woke, slumped against the side of the bed, with the now filled sick bag in one hand and the other hand clutching her head.

'Numbuh 3?' she heard someone say. Someone she knew.

'N-Numbuh 1? Is that... you?' she stammered, cringing at the bitter taste in her mouth.

One of the kids handed her a glass of water, and she took it and drank gratefully. She recognised the boy as Wally's- as Numbuh 4's- little brother. She smiled as she realised how similar they were. Then, in a rush of her old self, she got up, now completely recovered, and hopped from foot to foot in excitement.

'Numbuh 1! It _is _you! And Numbuh 2! Oh my gosh, I can't believe you guys were here the whole time! And-' a deep gasp, '-Numbuh 4 and Numbuh 5! Wally and Abby are Numbuh 4 and Numbuh 5! This is amazing! I thought we were never coming back! But we are! We're here! And- are we going to get the others?' She felt new, she felt happier than she had in a long time.

Numbuhs 1 and 2 smiled as well, happy to see Numbuh 3 back as her old self again.

'Well, duh! But first, we have to tell you what's going on...'

The story had Kuki near tears. How could that many kids have been turned over to the adults in so little time? Of course, she knew who was behind all this, but Nigel and Hoagie told her that they were going to wait until everyone was back until they let it out, and she fully agreed with that.

Eager to get Wally and Abby on board and have the whole team back together again, the one-and-a-bit teams set off.

But not before Fern, Numbuh 303, came up to her, holding her favourite Rainbow Monkey, the orange one, all patched up and worn out.

'Hi, Numbuh 3! I know this was yours, so, well, here you go!' She held it out, an Numbuh 3 took it thankfully.

'Aw, thank-you, Numbuh 303! Do you like Rainbow Monkeys too?'

The girl nodded eagerly.

Numuh 3 pulled out her keys from her pocket. A hundred little colourful charms jingled as she did so, one of them a tiny little Rainbow Monkey on a chain. Unhooking it carefully, she held it out on her palm, presenting it to Numbuh 303, who squealed in delight.

'Really?' She asked in disbelief.

'Yup! I want you to have it.'

Another squeal, this time even louder.

'Thank you! Thank you, thank you thank you!'

'Don't mention it.'

Numbuh 3 stood back up, looking around to everyone else.

'So, what are we waiting for?' she said. 'Let's go get Numbuh 4!'

Hoagie stepped forward.

'One problem,' he said. 'I have a feeling that Wally isn't going to be as easily convinced to follow us as, well, us.'

Everyone stopped for a moment, knowing that what Hoagie had said was true. Wally wasn't the kind to just follow someone with no questions asked.

Fortunately, Joey had spent his sleepless nights before this day planning exactly what he would do when it came time to bring Numbuh 4 in.

'Don't worry,' he said, stepping forward.

'I know just what to do.'

_Numbuh 4, 1353, 29th November, 2014_

Wally was in Gym class, running laps on his own while everyone else jogged in groups of three or four. Ever since he had been "busted" for something he didn't do, people had been talking. Some claimed to have seen him in the act, others claimed they knew all along. They were all lying. None of them could have known that Wally was doing all the things Ace had thrown on him, because he hadn't done them. That good-for-nothing jerk had been at him ever since he stood up to him in the whole laser tag incident.

Now, "The Kidd" kept throwing him dirty looks, as if they actually cut Wally physically, effected him at all. Wally didn't care. He never really cared what Ace thought. Or anyone else, for that matter. Except Kuki. He wondered a lot she believed all that stuff, but then, he thought; _of course she does. I'm a "guy like me" and she's... she's everything. _

What reason was there for Kuki _not _to believe it? Everything Wally was known for teed up perfectly with the accusations. And now, he was attracting the wrong kind of attention. The attention of the school "bad boys."

That was a crowd that Wally did _not _want to end up in. He may have no regard for things like rules or deadlines, but laws were something he followed, and he didn't want to end up with a gang that broke laws without thinking twice.

Suddenly, Wally was aware of a rustling in the bushes just off to the side of the oval, just in front of him. Thinking it was just a bird, nothing of any interest, he kept jogging, but as he passed by, something whispered to him;

'_Wally! Wally, ova here!'_

He knew that voice.

So, checking carefully to make sure he wasn't being watched, he quickly ducked off the running track and into the cover of the shadows.

'_Joey? What tha heck are _you _doin' here?'_

His brother's head poked out of the side of the bush, and instantly Wally knew something was up. The look of worry, and of _fear _hit him full on. Something just wasn't right here.

'_W-Wally, that man, tha man that tried ta kidnap me, he's back! He's after me! Wally please help me!' _Joey panted, his eyes glazed over with fear.

Wally stopped breathing for a minute, trying to process the situation. He thought that old jerk had learned his lesson the last time he and Joey had beat him. Apparently not.

'_Okay, Joe. We're gonna have ta hide for a little while. Ah'll- Ah'll sneak ya to the office, then once we're there Ah'll call the police, alright?'_

Joey shook his head, which was a surprise to Wally.

'_No! Ah'm scared, Wally! The man will know that Ah'll come ta you! He'll know that we're here! We need ta get out of tha school! Into tha park, in tha trees, just for now!'_

Wally was starting to get confused. Why would his brother not want him to call the police. Suspicions about this guy started to arise at the back of his mind. What were his intentions with his little brother? What did he want?

But he could also see sence in Joey's arguements. The man _might _come here, and Joey was scared enough to convince himself of anything.

So, for his brother's comfort as well as his safety, Wally led the two into the park, and in doing so, led his little brother away from danger.

Or at least, what he _thought _was danger.

In the park, Joey started to almost take the lead himself, and Wally didn't mind. He was just going with the flow.

The two had been walking for about five minutes when Wally noticed something. Something like a huge, hulking shape not far off from them.

'Uh, Joey? You see that thing too, roight?'

Joey was suddenly a bit uncomfortable.

'Uh, what thing? J-just keep walking.'

Wally kept walking, but his eyebrows were now creased in confusion, wondering if maybe there was another reason that he and his brother were there.

His suspicions were confirmed three minutes later, with the appearance of six kids standing outside a huge metal contraption, with jets and wings and everything.

'Joey? Why are we _really _here?' He asked, now just a tiny bit nervous as well as confused and concerned.

Joey looked caught. He deflated a bit, turning arund to face his brother.

'Wally. Ah know you're unsure about this, but we _need _you to get into that ship,' he said seriously. Wally wasn't so sure about that.

'What? No, Ah don't think so. Look, Ah don't have a _clue _whot's goin' on here, and Ah'm not sure Ah want ta do this-' but his brother's pleading look stopped him mid-sentance.

'Wally, Ah get everything ya just said. But you'll understand once ya get on the ship. Ah need you ta trust me on this one, Wally. I _need _you tatrust me.' Those eyes, that tone of sincerity, the familiar look of the fringe cutting off his eyes halfway, everything about him screamed; _PLEASE. _And Wally just had to give in.

'Okay, Ah'll get on. But Ah want ta know _why _real soon, okay?' He relented, taking a few steps towards a ramp that led inside the huge contraption.

What he was most surprised by on entry to the ship, was Nigel, Hoagie, and perhaps most of all, Kuki. She was standing there, her trademark smile all but doubled in size. He noticed that Nigel and Hoagie were both smiling widely too, and he frowned back a them in utter confusion.

'Hi Numb-' Kuki started to say, only to be cut off quickly by Hoagie.

'Hi _Wally,' _he said, directing the emphasis of the word to Kuki, as if reminding her what his name was. Wally could not have been more weirded out. First of all, the obvious question, why were they here? Then, another thing, why _them_? These people were all as different as sugar and salt. And yet, here they were in this strange, futuristic yet old-in the sense that most of the buttons were bottlecaps sort of spaceship.

'Uh- Wally, you might want to take a seat,' Nigel said, laying a hand on a big hospital bed-like table in the middle of the weird craft. Wally hopped up, sitting there, keeping a close watch on everyone inside the vehicle, from the five kids who stood, watching on eagerly in the corner, to Nigel, Hoagie and Kuki standing in front of him, to Joey, who was next to the bed, biting his bottom lip and smiling hugely, sort of jiggling on the spot like he was unable to contain it.

Hoagie exhaled deeply from in front of him, drawing Wally's attention back to him and the two others next to him.

'Okay, Wally, this may feel weird, but trust me, it's worth it,' Nigel assured him.

Wally was suddenly aware that all eyes were on him. Then, Nigel began to speak;

'Numbuh 4? You broke _another _S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R! That's the fourth one this week!'

Wally's breathing suddenly became shallower and more labored.

'Numbuh 4! You wanna play with me and my Care 'n' Share Rainbow Monkey?' Kuki beamed.

Wally fell to the table, lying, staring up at the ceiling as it shifted before his very eyes. His mouth was starting to move, but nothing was coming out. He felt like he needed to move, but his muscles had suddenly gone rogue.

'Numbuh 4, they just brought out new yipper comics! We have to go get them!'

Suddenly, it was like Wally was dreaming. Colours swirled around him, the room was spinning, and his heart was thudding in his ear, jumping up into his throat. His head was being shifted around, everything he thought he knew was changing, changing, changing back to the way it used to be. Faces were matched with names, then names matched with Numbuhs, then Numbuhs with memories of things that had happened long ago.

Then, everything went black.

_'Numbuh 4... are you.. there?' _He heard a soft, sweet voice calling him from far away- no, just outside- no, right above him.

He groaned, and forced his arms to work to push himself up on the bench. When he finally realised what was going on, what had happened, his eyes shot open instantly and he almost screamed with happiness. The blurry blobs in front of him took shape, and he saw those four people as they really were once again.

'You... Numbuh 1... and Ah... Ah was...Ah-Ah _am_...' He tried to speak, but only every fourth word or so came out.

Someone whose words _did _come out however was Joey. He ran around the room yelling at the top of his lungs that "Numbuh 4 was back! Numbuh 4 was back!" before running over to Numbuh 4 himself and throwing himself into a hug. Numbuh 4 was dazed, and still a little dizzy, but he found it easy to hug back. Then he realised.

Where he was.

What his brother knew.

Who his brother _was. _

And then he could speak again.

'Joey! You-you're in tha KND!'

His brother nodded furiously.

'Wow! Just loike your olda brother, 'ay?'

More nodding. Then, he got down off the table, stood in front of Numbuh 4, and saluted sharply.

'Numbuh 404 of the current Sector V, at your service!' He reported, still unable to control the simle on his face, the one that matched Numbuh 4's exactly.

'Aw, man, this is awesome! Ah'm back! And so are you guys! Numbuh 1, and Numbuh 2, and Numbuh 3... hi, guys.' He said, feeling the warm return of his real friends in his heart.

But then, the story had started.

The story made Numbuh 4 angry, it made him worried, it made him feel all kinds of things, but most of all, he felt bad for his brother, who had had to go through all this while _Wally _thought he was fine.

Good thing Numbuh 4 knew better.

Numbuh 2 was about to fire up the engines to leave, so they could pick up Numbuh 5 before deciding what to do next.

Then, Joey- oh, Numbuh 404, tugged on his sleeve.

'Uh, Numbuh 4?' He called, suddenly a bit shy.

'Whot's up, 404?'

'Ah- uhm, Ah found this in your room, on your bed. Ah thoughy ya might want it back.' Numbuh 404 was holding up Numbuh 4's favourite yipper card, torn at the edges and slightly faded with age, but still there, still whole.

Numbuh 4, lowered down until he was level with Numbuh 404, then smiled warmly at his brother, his brother who was doing the Beatles' family proud while Numbuh 4 was stuck being Wally.

'Thanks, man. You've been doin' well, Ah can tell.' The two hugged again.

'Oh and Numbuh 404,' Numbuh 4 began, looking Numbuh 404 in the eye.

'Tricking me into following ya through tha park? Well played, my man, well played.'

_Numbuh 5, 1442, 29th November, 2014_

Abby yawned and stretched out, leaning back away from the desk. She was in the library, trying to finish an article for the school paper on "Suburbia." She wasn't even sure what that was. _Suburbia _sounded a bit like some kind of medication that was meant to help you sleep.

Well, if that was true, Abby could have used some Suburbia right then. She had slept in about four out of the last seven nights. On the nights that she _did_ sleep, the rest was always short-lived.

When Kuki had stumbled upon Abby that day in the treehouse, she had somehow triggered something. The dreams had returned with a vengance, and that day, when she and her friend had ended up exploring the rest of the treehouse, stopping when one of them encountered the vicious attacks of the mind; the voices, the images, the pounding in the head, like someone trying to break down a door. It seemed like a dream in itself. And Abby knew a lot about dreams.

The dreams invaded her mind almost every time she closed her eyes. Dreams about good things, bad things, and just downright weird things. She was starting to freak herself out. She'd had one the other night where she was stuck in some kind of dungeon, begging some kid she remembered from other dreams for help. She had woken up hysterical, in tears, with a sort of despiration down in the pit of her stomach. Someone could write a novel entirely out of the dreams she was having, but then they would probably just weird everyone out too much to read it.

She looked back at the computer screen, where the words 'Suburbia is,' stared back at her. She thought about giving up on the article and starting on something else, but she stopped herself. Abigail Lincoln did not give up on _anything. _Ever.

A tapping on the window to the library computer room she was in startled her from her fruitless thoughts. She looked up to see Kuki and Hoagie waving back at her, gesturing for her to come outside.

Confused, she got up from the computer, not bothering to save (there was nothing of any value on there, anyway) and opened the door.

'Hey Abby!' Kuki chanted, skipping over to her. Hoagie walked up beside her, looking slightly awkward.

'Uhm, hi.'

There was something different about these two today. Hoagie was obvious. What was up with those goggles? Had he been flying a plane or something? But, she had to admit, they did look... kind of cool.

But Kuki, she was harder to pinpoint. She was just... different. Somehow.

'So, what are you guys doing here?' Abby asked, cocking her head a little at the two. She wondered why they were even there together. They didn't seem like the type to be hanging out with each other.

'We- we need you to follow us,' Hoagie stammered, his face turning red.

'Why?'

'Uhh, well... oh! Um, Hoagie's making a nature documentary for his film class,' Kuki swooped in to supply an answer.

'Yeah! Yeah, that's what I'm doing!' Hoagie said quickly, as if he'd only just remembered that. 'And we need another camera person.'

'But, why would you need two?' Abby asked, wondering about a whole plethera of things that she could not think of an answer to.

'Because... we want to get the shots from different angles.' Hoagie said, sounding a bit like he was improvising. She frowned a bit at the two, unsure whether their story was legitimate, before shrugging, as she realised that Kuki was her best friend, and Hoagie was a new friend but a good one, and if they were hiding anything it wouldn't be anything bad.

'Alright then. Let's go,' she agreed, gesturing for them to lead the way.

Out in the park, Abby was a bit sceptical of Kuki and Hoagie. They seemed to be just a little nervous, just a little bit uncomfortable. But, she still kept walking, deciding that she was probably just tired and paranoid, given all the strange things that had been going on in her mind lately.

But her suspicions were unexpectedly confirmed soon enough.

'Okay, what the _heck _is that thing?' Abby asked upon sighting the SCAMPER II for the first time.

'_Here's where it gets tricky,' _she swore she heard Hoagie whisper.

'Uh, okay guys. I-I'm not so sure that I want to keep going with this.' Abby took a step back cautiously, looking at the huge thing and wondering -for about the twentieth time- exactly what was going on that she didn't know about. And it just got plain strange when Nigel and Wally stepped out.

'Look, Abby,' Nigel stated, stepping out towards her.

'I'm going to level with you; we were all unsure about this, but you just have to do it.'

Abby shook her head in disbelief. What was going on here was something she wasn't even sure she _wanted_ to know.

'Nuh-uh. This is just strange, guys. I think I'm just going to leave.'

Her voice said that she was sure, but her heart said something else. Something inside her, whether it be the reminder that these people were some of her best friends, or the fact that she really _did _want to find out just what this was all about, but something pulled her back towards that strange park scene as she turned away. She wanted to keep walking, but she wanted to walk the other way.

'Oh... okay, alright. Show me what you got.' She said, turning around, walking back towards the giant schoolbs-plane.

'Yes! Alroight, follow us!' Wally's behaviour was also vastly different. He didn't seem as much like the _I-don't-care _boy that Abby knew him as, but more like someone who was _actually interested _in what was going on.

So, Abby followed the four others submissively up the ramp, and into the ship.

Abby registered the children's presence, but she was all but surprised out for the day, and so didn't seem to gather any shock from them being there.

She was instructed to hop up onto the table, and did so without arguement. Her friends looked like they meant buisiness; whatever their buisiness was.

They looked down at her with a mixture of excitement, sentimentality and affection.

Then, they started talking.

'Numbuh 5, what do you say to sodas at Lime Ricky's tonight?'

_That name._

_Numbuh 5._

Abby bit down on her lower lip, hard. It helped keep her alert. She'd used that trick all week to stay awake during class.

'We made it back, Numbuh 5! You think we should break out the stash?'

This time, she could not stop the swirl of colours that flew in front of her eyes. Suddenly, the voices in her ears suddenly dulled, like she was underwater.

'Numbuh 5, have you seen my sunglasses?'

Now, she couldn't even tell whether she was lying down or sitting up, she was so disoriented. And then one, final sentance, the last thing she heard before blacking out, her head overloaded to the point of giving up.

_'Numbuh 5, I found your hat, you dropped it when you were running.'_

...

...

...

Abby returned to conciousness, but not as Abby. As Numbuh 5.

Blobs grew into shapes, then into silhouettes, then, finally, people.

As soon as she felt she could do so without throwing up, Numbuh 5 lept from the bed and pulled all her teammates into a groupt hug.

'Woohoo! Numbuh 5 is back, baby! We're all back!' She beamed radiantly at the four others she had been unknowingly craving for three years. They were all back together once more.

After what seemed like forever, she broke the embrace, knowing that for the joy of seeing Sector V together again, there had to be a grief, a reason, to go along with it.

'Alright, then,' she said, straightening her navy blue shirt. 'There's got to be something big going on. So spill.'

She sat through the story, frowning the whole time. She shared an anxious look with her team, who also obviously knew what was going on. It was all very confronting. However, she was proud to find that Robert, Numbuh 263, had done well in handling it so far. And they had also done well on tracking down her and the team as well. There were things Numbuh 5 shook her head in sadness at; Colter, the 'turned' operatives, the way that all the kids there had bags under their eyes from lack of sleep. But, there were things that she smiled at too; Joey Beatles, and the way that he looked up to his older brother like he was a God. Or maybe, the way that all these kids, even though they were tired and emotionally worn out, still sparkled with a ray of hope, now that they had found their heroes.

As Numbuh 2 was revving up the engines to leave, she was approached by Olivia, Numbuh 505 from the current Sector V.

'Hi, Numbuh 5,' she said softly, eyes on the floor where her foot traced nervous circles on the shined metal.

'Hey, Numbuh 505. Whatcha got there?' Numbuh 5 replied, refering to the item in Olivia's balled fist.

'I- I found your earrings in the treehouse. I- I thought... here.' She pushed out her hand, opening it to reveal the golden hoops that Numbuh 5 had loved bt Abby Lincoln had forgotten.

Numbuh 5 gasped.

'Thank you _so _much. This means more than you know. Thank you, Numbuh 505, really.' Numbuh 5 hugged the girl tightly, before taking out the studs she had in her ears and replacing them with her old hoops. They felt right as soon as they were fastened.

Numbuh 263 had gathered everyone in the middle of the SCAMPER's hull.

'I think our first priority should be to get up to moonbase. Then, we can get you guys all sorted out, and give you a proper analysis of our situation. Then, we can decide what to do from there,' he said, taking a deep breath.

'Good idea. I think the team and I have some information as well that we'd like to input,' Numbuh 1 added.

'Numbuh 2, how fast can you get us out of here?'

Numbuh 2 perked up instantly.

'Faster than you can say "spacially impossible!"' he joked, already settled into the pilot's seat. The engine buzzed to life and Numbuh 2 kicked it into turbo drive.

'Attention all passengers, we ask that you please fasten your seatbelts... now,' he warned, to which everyone quickly complied, sensing in the pilot's tone that he meant buisiness.

'Alright everyone, this could be a bit of a bumpy ride.' Numbuh 2's hand flexed on the accelerator, wanting to go crazy, craving the exhilleration of flying once more.

_'So hang on to your underwear!'_

They were well on their way to moonbase within minutes. People were still slightly overwhelmed by the fact that they -or, in the case of the younger operatives, their heroes- were actually back from the inescapable pit of decommissioning. Everyone was talking, -nonstop, at that- either to the sector before or after them. People were recounting missions, memories, or things that now made sense, and the younger ones bombarded their predecessors with questions about what it was like to be so famous.

Eventually, Numbuh 1, Numbuh 3 Numbuh 4 and Numbuh 5 came to drift into the middle, in one big group, smiling warmly, as they had been for most of the day. Inside, at least.

Numbuh 2, over at the pilot's seat, sensed that he should be there too.

'Hey, Numbuh 202,' he said to Jake. 'I need you to take the wheel. Can you do that for me?'

Numbuh 202 eagerly assumed the role of pilot, as Numbuh 2 joined his friends in the middle of the SCAMPER.

'Well, we're all back,' Numbuh 5 said. 'I'll be honest, Numbuh 5 didn't think we'd ever be Sector V again.'

'You and me both,' Numbuh 1 agreed.

'I know. I'm just glad I'll be able to sleep tonight!' Numbuh 2 added.

'And now that we're all together again, we can get back to doing what we're supposed to do!' Numbuh 3 chorused, in her normal, Numbuh 3 sing-song voice.

'Well, what do ya guys say?' Numbuh 4 began, pulling the others into a huddle, just like they used to.

'Ready to kick some adult butt?'

Everyone seemed to know exactly what was coming next.

They went in order; Numbuh 5 down to Numbuh 1.

'Five!'

'Four!'

'Three!'

'Two!'

'One!'

Everyone, including the kids around them, watching them, seeing their faces, their utterly overjoyed faces, seemed to hold their breath, waiting for what Numbuh 1 would say next. The silence was something so intense, you would have to cut it with a chainsaw.

'Kids Next Door...'

...

...

'We. Are. Back.'

**A/N: AH! I loved writing those two chapters! This is the whole reason I started this story, so I could do all that stuff then have Sector V come BACK TO LIFE! Ehe, sorry. Tiny fangirl moment there...**

**R&R please!**

**Okay, carry on...**

**-xoxo, Numbuh 25**


	23. Ch 22, the State Things are In

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kids Next Door, if I did, Hoagie and Abby would have been together by the last episode.**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 22 – The State Things are In

Numbuh 1 yawned, stretching out his tired limbs. He was tired, it'd been a long day, and he had been behind on sleep for almost a month now. He really needed a good night's rest, but the last thing he wanted to do right now was lay down and waste time that he could be using to do something productive as a member of the KND again. He looked around the hull of the SCAMPER, noting the fact that everyone else looked to be in a similar state to him. Even Numbuh 202, who was steering the ship at the guidance of Numbuh 2 looked like he was having to make an effort to keep his eyes open.

'Y'know, Numbuh 5 really can't believe that we're all here right now,' Numbuh 5 said, walking over and dropping herself down next to their team leader. 'I thought if we'd ever be _us _again... well, I just didn't think we would.'

Nigel laughed silently.

'Yeah. It was looking pretty bleak when they finally tracked me down,' Numbuh 1 agreed, remembering back to that day. He hadn't really been captured. In fact, he was on his way to turn himself in, when they swarmed him. He had realised that he was nothing without his team, and the few times that he had seen his team since they had all been decommissioned had been agony. Watching them, so obliviously happy, unaware of who they used to be. Even if it was only a mere matter of months before, it still seemed like a lifetime away.

But all of that was different now. Sidelined to the fact that they were back, and able to do what they were meant to do, to be a team, once more.

There was still one thing that was niggling away at the back of his mind. Rachel. Or Numbuh 362. He didn't know which to call her. He wished she was here, she was back too. She deserved to be just as much as his friends did. He wondered whether he could convince the others to go back for her.

'What are you thinking about, Numbuh 1?' Numbuh 5 asked, looking at him as he gazed out one of the windows, watching the moon as it grew slowly closer to them. He used to love coming up here, because it always meant he would see Rachel.

'Old friends,' he replied simply. Numbuh 5 nodded thoughtfully.

'Patton, Fanny, Sonya, Lee -they'd be thirteen now, right?' she began counting off on her fingers all the decommissioned operatives she knew. 'There's one more, isn't there? I'm forgetting someone. Numbuh 1, do _you _know who I'm talking about?' She said, sounding deliberatly sarcastic, fully aware of who she hadn't counted. Nigel only blushed and looked down at the floor.

'Aw, come on, boy! Don't try to go pretendin' you don't like Rachel! We _all _know it!' Numbuh 5 gave him a friendly shove, laughing loudly. Numbuh 1 really wished she wasn't talking so loud.

'Huh? Who are we talking about?' Numbuh 3 came skipping over, sitting down, cross legged, so that the three of them formed a triangle.

'I'll tell you what we're talkin' about!' Numbuh 5 said, grinning micheviously. 'Nigel and Rachel, sittin' in a tree!' She chanted.

'K-I-S-S-I-N-G!' Numbuhs 2, 3 and 4 joined in from where they were on the ship. Numbuh 1 just rolled his eyes, though inside he was blushing like crazy.

'Oh my gosh, Numbuh 1, do you remember _Lizzie?' _Numbuh 3 said, short of breath for all her laughter. She was having trouble speaking without bursting into a fit of giggles. And everyone else burst out with mirth at the mention of his crazy ex-girlfriend. Abby was literally rolling around on the floor of the ship. Even Numbuh 1 had to smile.

'Yeah, okay. So she was kind of a mistake.'

'_Kind of?' _Wally repeated, unaware of his brother's confused frown from beside him. 'That girl was _nuts!_'

Then, Nigel smiled in realisation.

'Now I finally understand all the weird looks she always gave me in the school hallways.'

That only resulted in more laughter. Numbuh 3 was giggling like she was insane. Numbuh 2 was struggling to keep his composure at the co-pilot's wheel. Numbuhs 4 and 5 held their sides, which were aching now from laughing too hard, their eyes watering, but still they didn't stop. It was like now they had an outlet for all their happiness other than cartwheeling (which wouldn't have turned out well in a confined space) and screaming at the top of their lungs. The laughter let them express the build up of all that amazing joy, and they were relishing every moment of this time that they had together.

'Oh, and speaking of crazy crushes, how about King Sandy?' Numbuh 2 suggested. More uncontrollable laughter. Though Numbuh 4 didn't really seem too amused by the thought of _that _little creep.

All the younger operatives onboard the ship seemed dumbfounded. They had no idea what was going on. Though Numbuh 263 did recognise the name Rachel as Numbuh 362, the Soopreme Leader before Numbuh 5.

When the laughter finally died down, Numbuh 202 spoke up.

'We're getting pretty close guys, you might want to buckle up for entry into the Moon's atmosphere.'

So, still with an occasional giggle, everyone took a seat, or fastened themselves in.

'Re-entry in thirty seconds,' Hoagie said, tapping codes into keypads and adjusting dials left, right and centre.

Suddenly, Numbuh 1 felt sort of nervous. He hadn't been to moonbase in almost four years. When the people who were after him when he left the GKND finally tracked him down, they didn't bother taking him up there. They just decommissioned him on the spot, and took him back home. He was actually unconcious for the trip there. More sleeping gas. That seemed a popular way to get someone where you wanted them.

Returning to the moonbase after four years, as well as being in there as a _teen_ surrounded by kids. It would not be easy. But then again, maybe the operatives up there would recognise them. He doubted that, but maybe some of the older ones would remember. Maybe.

'Twenty seconds and counting,' Numbuh 2 reported.

Numbuh 5 had a funny, butterfly sort of feeling in her stomach. She didn't know why. It was a little scary, but exciting scary. A thrill ride. She wondered what they had changed since they had last been there. Three years was a long time.

'Ten seconds.'

Numbuh 3 was excited. She couldn't wait to see everyone there, see if there was anyone she recognised as a sibling of an old comnrade.

'Seven.'

Numbuh 4 didn't care what the people up there thought of a bunch of teens walking into moonbase. If they knew who they were, good for them, if not, tough luck. But, he knew he wouldn't be able to work on the case for much longer. At least not here. He was leaving for Australia in a couple of weeks, and that meant Joey was out of the picture as well. Maybe they could work long-distance.

'Five,' Numbuh 2 said, waiting on the edge of his seat -literally- for the exhilerating blow of breaking the moon's atmosphere. He wanted to be on the moon again, see the Earth as a blue Sun, with the white wisps of cloud swirling around it. He began to wonder just how much more advanced the technology had become since he had been decommissioned. He had already heard the juniors talking about some kind of 'intercom chip' that somehow attatched to the body while remaining unseen. Now _that _sounded cool. He couldn't wait to get back to his tools, see what he could really do now, because with the kind of equipment he predicted was available to him now, he was sure he could show the operatives of today a thing or two about technology.

'Five.'

Numbuh 1 took a deep breath.

'Four.'

Numbuh 5 gulped.

'Three.'

Numbuh 4 nodded to himself, looking straight forward.

'Two.'

Numbuh 3 smiled widely, wriggling in her seat.

'One.'

Numbuh 1's hand left the controls, as he and Numbuh 202 stopped to let the SCAMPER finish the job.

'Re-entry initiated.'

The whole ship gave a heavy jolt, and all of its passengers were thrown back in their seats. Everything felt ten times its weight for a moment, until the ship was safely through the barrier, and the weightlessness of space took effect. The seatbelts strained to hold people down as they started to rise.

'Woo!' Numbuh 4 hooted, immediately undoing his seatbelts and letting himself float there in midair. 'I forgot how awesome this feels!'

'Yeah?' Numbuh 263 smirked. 'Well, you better get back to the ground before we enter the moonbase landing, and the normal atmosphere -and the normal level of _gravity _returns and you end up landing on your head and getting a concussion.'

Numbuh 4 promtly proceeded to dragged himself back to his seat and strap back in, just in time for the downward pull of gravity kicked back in.

'Requesting permission to dock, Numbuh 1969,' Jake, Numbuh 202, spoke into a radio on the dashboard. Better to have him do the talking than Numbuh 2, who would raise all kinds of alarm.

'Permission granted, Numbuh 202. Take it slow, though, there are a lot of ships in there. People are actually _sleeping _up here. Over.'

'Wow, things are really getting bad. Okay, thanks Numbuh 1969. Over.'

'Anytime. Say hi to the team from me. Over and out.'

While Hoagie manoeuvred the SCAMPER into the docking station, Jake spun his seat around to face everyone else.

'Um, Numbuh 1969 says hi,' he said, aware that they could hear the station master through the radio, but unsure of what to do or how to act.

Ten minutes later, the group had found a parking spot.

And they had indeed seen small groups of kids, either the remains of a sector that had been torn apart by the turning, or the survivers from a few sectors, banded together for protection and support. They were all stocked up with blankets and pillows, handheld video games and decks of cards, basketballs and dartboards, candy bars and coolers full of soda. It was a sad sight, seeing all of those who hadn't been quick enough to snag an empty space in the actual moonbase, sleeping in their own SCAMPERs, just to be out of danger of the turning. They all looked scared, they all looked emotionally exhausted, but they were being strong, pulling through.

Sector V received some strange looks as they walked past, towards the entry to the lower levels of Moonbase. A few kids did double takes, rubbing their eyes to make sure that they were actually seeing what they thought they were. They woke their friends, who were sleeping on cold, hard floors next to them, pointing them out. There were obviously a couple of people who recognised them, as a few cheers and big smiles that said '_We're saved,' _were also sent their way. No-one really knew how they could be recognised; they all thought that they had changed so much over the years. Apparently not so much as to be unrecognisable. The team smiled at the fact that they were not completely forgotten, but inside, they knew that those cheers, those relieved beams also meant that they were counting on them to fix the problem. Pressure. Yay.

'Alright,' Robert turned to face them, and they all returned their focus to him. 'What I'm going to do is get you onto the observation deck. My office would be too small to fit us all in.' He gestured to the ten others standing around, listening intently.

'So, what are we going to do once we get there?' Numbuh 505 called out. The members of the original Sector V looked at each other, knowing that it was about time to spill the beans. Numbuh 1 took the liberty of speaking on behalf of the team.

'Uhm, we have some information we think is important,' he said, stepping forward slightly. Numbuh 263 looked slightly surprised.

'Oh. Okay then. Once we get up there, you can tell us everything.'

So, the eleven of them -the two Sector Vs and Robert- made their way to the elevator that would take them up to the top floor of the Moonbase. Surprisingly, the elevator was big enough for all of them. Teenage prisoners sometimes had to be taken up to the top, where the jury would decide their fate, and they could sometimes get pretty desperate, so it was better to give quite a bit of space to avoid serious injury.

To the older operatives there, everything seemed to be new; there were new levels to the treehouse, a new layout for the ones that were still there, and a whole different, more futuristic look to the Base at a whole. The team was too distracted with craning their necks to read the labels on the elevator buttons and examining all the things that just weren't the same as they were in the "_old days" _to talk, so they rode in silence.

But, when the elevator doors slid back on themselves to reveal a floor covered with kids, all scattered and moving in different directions, they knew it was still the same Moonbase.

But something wasn't right.

These kids weren't doing what they should have been doing. Instead of kids restocking ammunition supplies, they were carrying sleeping bags and pulling around crates of food rations. Instead of cadets gazing around, mezmerised with their first glances of the Moonbase, kids were sitting on the steps that led from the meeting arena, unenthusiastically prodding their ham-and-cheese sandwitches, their faces downcast, some of them even with red rings around small, puffy eyes.

'Welcome to what Moonbase had become.' There was a sad, almost guilty tone in Numbuh 263's voice. It was obvious that he was blaming this all on himself. 'It's not Disneyland, but it's keeping us all safe at the moment.'

Everyone looked around at all the scared, upset faces.

The current operatives watched on with cold inevitability tugging at their hearts, while the older ones were struck with devastating shock. What had become of the KND was terrifying, and now they only hoped they could help fix it.

'Well, I guess there's no point in staying here any longer,' Numbuh 121 spoke up. 'We'd better get to the observation deck.'

Everyone nodded slowly, and followed the way to the glass dome they were here for.

Upon entering the deck, all the original operatives of Sector V heaved a huge breath, having almost forgotten the amazing view of the never-ending starry night of space.

'Wow,' Abby breathed, tipping her head all the way back to take in the full beauty of the little fairy lights sparkling in the blackness above her.

'I'll say,' Hoagie replied, in the same state. They tilted their heads back down, their eyes meeting awkwardly for a minute. A warm, red blush crept over their faces.

Both of them remembered their... situation before they had been decommissioned. The incident in the trenches, and everything after that, with the relationship. The couple had never ended, it was just decommissioning that got in the way. And neither of the two had any idea what they were meant to do now. They both still liked each other, but they were oblivious to the fact that the other still liked them back. They had even liked each other _after _decommissioning, but still, things were slightly awkward. Wally and Kuki, however, were not awkward. Since neither had ever confessed to liking the other, they still had the option to pretend that they didn't, at least to the other's face. Even if they did like each other as much as Hoagie and Abby, they still didn't know.

Love.

Complitated little thing, isn't it?

Especially when mixed in with temporary memory loss.

'Okay, so I guess that Sector V can tell us what they were going to now, then,' Robert said, not bothering with formality as he took a seat on the metal deck, crossing his legs indian style. Everyone else copied, and the story began.

'So, a while back, about four or five years actually, there was this guy, Dr. Colter, who had found a way to...' Nigel launched into the story.

The younger operatives watched and listened in shock and horror as they were told about the war, and the things that had been done, and, most of all, what the battle was all for.

'...And so then, Numbuh 2 was on the computer, and we were all trying to buy some time so he could hack into the computer to find the formula,' Numbuh 5 said, actually engaged by her own story, seeing it all play out in her mind once more.

'-Oh! And then Colter came in!' Kuki chimed, the image of the tall, lanky, overall ominous "scientist" that her mind conjured up almost enough to make her shudder.

'And after that, I got into the computer's mainframe, and I...' Numbuh 2 took over. They told the rest of the story, taking it in turns to tell parts that they remembered, even quarrelling a bit over the details.

'...So, in tha end, we won. Tha formula was completely messed up beyond recognition. And that's how it ended,' Numbuh 4 finished, looking down at no particular spot on the ground, feeling an odd mix of emotions. Sadness for that time, pride at how him and his team had pulled through, and an indescribible feeling, one that sort of felt like '_and now, it's all happening again.' _He looked over at Joey, who sat hugging his knees, feeling utterly astounded at what his brother had done, how amazing him an his team had been that day. But at the same time, Wally was thinking of how much Joey had been through in the past months, and how he had managed so well in keeping that out of his home life. Never once had he looked unhappy or overly tired at home, and save for those few early nights to bed every now and then, he had given no sign of inner turmoil. But now that Wally knew, he just wished he could go back in time and do something to make it better.

Everyone had cottoned on in their own time to what this story meant to the current situation the KND was in. In their own time, all the young faces around the circle broke their concentrated frowns with looks of black realisation, knowing that this infectious gas cloud of mind-altering chemical was the reason that so many of their friends now walked, talked, thought and acted like arrogant, stuck-up teens.

For a while, everyone just sat in silence, letting the words just hang there, heavy with the emotions and memories attatched to them. A few people, incluing Abby and Numbuhs 303 and 263, ended up laying down, staring up in thought through the glass that surrounded them. Everyone was thinking about different things, going off onto different things, directing their train of though in different directions, but they all seemed to be branches of the same tree; they were all thinking about what they were going to do next, how they were going to fool Colter again.

'So,' Numbuh 202 finally said, sounding like he just couldn't take the silence anymore.

'Uhm, what do we do now?'

There was no answer for a long time. No-one really knew who the question was aimed to, but then, even if they did know, they wouldn't be able to answer it any better.

'I-I don't know. I guess we could see if there was any way to _reverse _the effect of the chemical,' Numbuh 263 supplied, keeping his voice quiet as if he owed it to the rest of them. Numbuh 2's ears perked up. He wasn't sure he could possibly do it at all, but he was sure willing to give it a shot.

'Numbuh 2? Do you think yo could give that a crack?' Nigel asked, as everyone's eyes swivelled to land on Hoagie.

'Well,' Hoagie contemplated, going over the things that were required before he could even _start _trying to create an antidote.

'I would need a sample of the chemical itself, as well as the list of its core ingredients-' it was at this point that he wished he had made a copy of the formula for himself all those years ago, before destroying it. No doubt it would be under much higher security this time.

'Then, I would need a lot of supplies. Some two-by-four tech. equipment, a molecular scanner, some more tools- oh, and a brain scan of a kid before and after the turning would also be useful...' Everyone began to tune out after they realised that Hoagie was no longer giving them his requirements directly, but now just absent-mindedly counting them off on his fingers to himself.

'Robert, I know we've all had a big day, and it's-' Nigel checked his watch-'Twenty to seven now. I don't know about you guys, but _my _mum and dad will be wondering where I am. So, I think maybe we should pick this up again tomorrow after school?'

Everyone nodded, now beginning to look weary, like they wanted their own beds. But the thing was, tonight they were going to sleep in Numbuh 505's living room, all fully armed, even as they slept, in sleeping bags. It was just too risky otherwise.

The trip home unfolded in silence. Everyone was too consumed with thinking their own little thoughts. This was all a bit overwhelming. Everything. Being back, Colter returning, the faces of the operatives forced up to the Moonbase for protection. At least the second-generation Sector V still had protection in their own homes. They weren't down to that level... yet.

In the end, all the kids left for their own homes, to have dinner before meeting at Olivia's -Numbuh 505's- place, Wally telling Joey that he'd catch up to him.

'So, big day, huh?' Numbuh 3 said, her face just not as happy as usual.

'Mhmm,' Numbuh 5 replied, nodding slowly.

'You guys know we'll get through this, right?' Hoagie asked, seeming as sure of the fact as he was sure the sky was blue. 'We always get through.'

Numbuh 1 smiled, just a small, inward smile.

'Yeah, we do, don't we?'

Numbuh 4 laughed, as the others had missed out on one very important factor in this equation.

'Yeah, but then, it's usually us that ends up _makin' _most of tha trouble!' He joked. Suddenly, everyone just started laughing. They snapped out of their trances and giggled and smirked and joked, but inside they knew that Wally was right.

'But guys, Hoagie's right as well,' Abby said, resuming a serious tone. 'We may be the cause of a lot of our problems, but we always do figure out a way to fix 'em.'

There were warm smiles all around. They were glad just to be able to _know _each other again.

Eventually, they parted, each taking their own ways home, feeling warm inside, having pushed back a lump of black cloud just for now, and been able to enjoy just being Sector V again.

~(*)~

Numbuh 1 slipped into bed that night, thinking that he would fall asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. But he didn't. He lay there, awake, thinking about things. Things named Rachel. Was Abby right? Was his crush _that _obvious? Oh well, he still thought she should be able to remember as well. Maybe he'd bring it up tomorrow...

Numbuh 2 collapsed on his bed. He didn't even bother taking off his goggles. Too tired. Too overwhelmed. Too lazy. He thought about Abby, and how amazing it had felt when they were together, before they had turned thirteen. He wanted that back, but she probably thought he was just a dork now. He'd probably chicken out of asking her on a date or anything anyway...

Numbuh 3 would usually skip into her room, but tonight, she could only walk. She still could not believe that she was _Numbuh 3 _again! She felt bad for all those kids who had had teammates go through the turning, and all those kids who were now sleeping up on Moonbase. Poor things. She was also thinking about Wally. Her crush was just as bad as it had been way back then, but she still wasn't sure she wanted to tell him. What if he didn't like her? Then, not only would she know that it would never happen between them, it would probably mess up their friendship as well. Oh, well. Things would be better tomorrow, once she'd had a good night's sleep...

Wally's head was full of thoughts, for a change, all churning around his head, waiting for their time to surface. Kuki did the most. His one single greatest regret was not telling her how he felt before decommissioning. He remembered that _pang _in his chest before the process began, knowing that he had missed his chance. It was worse than anything he had ever felt. He knew he was too chicken to ask Kuki out or tell her anything about his lifelong crush, but that didn't stop him from hurting.

Oh, well. Let's just get to sleep so I don't have to think anymore...

Wow. Numbuh 5 could not seem to comprehend that this was happening. She let herself slip further down her pillow, closing her eyes. So much was going on lately, but everything she tried to think about just ended up coming back to Hoagie. The smirk, the false confidence, the jokes -that she hated, mind you- but she adored them anyway. Wait, what? Girl, you can't think about him that way anymore! He probably doesn't even like you anymore. She tried to resist, to guide her mind elsewhere, but it was getting late, and she was exhausted, so she just let herself think about him. About him. Abby smiled, as she lost hold of the last bit of conciousness she had held. She was happy, happy that they could be _them _again, and even if she and Hoagie weren't "together", they were still friends, and that was better than nothing...

**A/N:I need some help from you! But first, what did you think? I know, a lot of it was depressing... **sigh** poor KND...**

**Anyway! Wally and Joey's holiday in Aus is coming up, and I need your help to come up with names for their cousins and aunts and uncles and stuff! Okay, I need:**

**4X boy cousin names- ages 3, 7, 12 and 17**

**5X girl cousin names- ages 5, 12, 14, 16 and 19**

**2X aunt names- both between 30 and 45**

**2X uncle names- both between 30 and 45**

**And that's it! Just tell me what you think they should be called, plus ideas as to what the Beatles boys and their cousins can get up to during their trip would also be great! I was thinking, maybe they could get into a bit of trouble, maybe somehow end up on the beach or in the city without parents..? I don't know, you tell me! Okay, that's all from me for now.**

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	24. Ch 23, Back To School

**A/N: Hey! I'm back! Hope you like this chapter, and don't think that it's too... boring. Anyway, thank-you to everyone who gave me ideas for names! They were all great! Review response time!**

**Numbuh T-25: Haha! How can you see into my mind like that? Yes, don't worry Nigel indeed... memories are funny things, aren't they? One minute they're here, the next gone, and then they're back again!**

**MoreThanMeetsTheEye96: Angst is my specialty! I don't know why, I just enjoy writing it. Uhm, I don't mean it in that way, but I just like it because... uh... I've made myself look like an idiot now, right?**

**Rehtseni: Thank-you! I like when I'm able to give that sort of moment when people think; _hey! I remember that!_**

**Okay, now you can read!**

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Chapter 23 – Back to School

_BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!_

'Uggghh.'

Nigel groaned as his alarm clock just kept screaming at him. His head was pounding with its volume, as he felt his way around his bedside table, finally finding the off switch, and pushing it with a little more force than was needed.

'I'm up, I'm up,' he said to no-one in particular. He was tired. Unable to get to sleep until late last night, he was practically sleepwalking as he got up and headed over to his closet, pulling out a red t-shirt and a pair of dark jeans.

He got dressed, almost tripping over the legs of his pants for all his sleepiness.

Then, his phone went off, emitting a _ding! _noise to signify an incoming text message.

_Abby Lincoln: Hey man! How're we going to handle today at school? Numbuh or no Numbuh?_

Nigel frowned slightly in confusion, not knowing exactly what she meant by that.

_Nigel Uno: And by that you mean...?_

He put his phone down and finished packing his backpack, throwing in all the books and finished homework he needed. Once he was done and ready to head downstairs, his phone went off once again.

_Abby Lincoln: I mean, how quiet are we going to be about this? Are we talking, a) talk about everything, just quietly, b) talk, but not much, and only when there aren't many others around, or c) just flat-out pretending it never happened? _

Nigel desended the stairs, saying good morning to his parents before dropping a couple of slices of bread into the toaster. He knew that the others would not think they should bother with keeping the whole matter private. There was too much to talk about! Now that they had gone home and gotten some sleep, and they had had time to let the sheer awesome-ness of being recommissioned sink in, they were ready to talk and talk and talk about, well, everything. There was so much to cover!

But then, Numbuh 1, being Numbuh 1, wanted to keep this under wraps. What if some of the other teens knew who they were? If they saw them hanging out together, they might start to suspect something. And furthermore, any teen who knew the KND at all would recognise the use of the word _'Numbuh' _instantly. They just couldn't know that there wasn't some listening device recording their whole conversation.

And that's why he was the paranoid one.

~(*)~

Kuki woke up before her alarm, breathing in deeply as she sat up, stretching her arms out behind her head. She found that she was, even though she was up earlier than usual, she was a lot sleepier than any other day. She had been up late last night, just thinking about everything, or thinking about nothing. She wasn't really sure which one it was.

She showered, dressed, had a quick breakfast, and when she was still running early, she managed to catch some TV before it was time to leave. The rainbow monkey kids hour was just finishing, and she found it sentimental -as well as plain enjoyable- to sit an watch it for a while.

Her phone beeped on the couch next to her, and, after taking the last spoonful of cereal, she picked it up to see that Numbuh 5 had left her a text.

_Abby Lincoln: Hey Kuki. Nigel says we should keep the whole KND thing on the down-low, but I think it'd be okay to discuss it quietly as long as we don't do anything too rash. Seeya at school!_

Kuki chuckled. Same old Numbuh 1 always worrying about something or someone being on their trail.

_Kuki Sanban: Yeah, that'd be Nigel. Kay then, seeya then!_

Sighing, she picked up her bag and headed out the door, just as her sister was ready to go.

'Bye, mom! Bye dad!' she yelled into the kitchen.

'Goodbye, honey,' her mother called over a mug of coffee.

'Be good at school today, girls!' her father, who was stressing out as per usual about the tiniest of things, yelled back.

Kuki left the house, with her sister, scowling for some unknown reason, following after her.

~(*)~

Wally woke, late as usual, having slept through his alarm. He yawned, in no hurry at all. He threw on an orange t-shirt and some old blue jeans and headed downstairs. Grabbing his bag and an apple from the fruit bowl, he was already out the door, shooting a quick 'bye' to his parents. But, of course, he did have time to turn to Joey, and give him a quick wink. Joey smiled back, and the exchange was just enough to assure both boys that what had happened the day before was not just a dream.

Wally yawned as he slipped into the driver's seat of his ute. Only a couple more weeks, then he would be on a plane to Oz. His phone vibrated on the dashboard in front of him, scuttling across towards the door. He grabbed it and slouched back in his seat to read it.

_Kuki Sanban: Keeping things quiet today, Wally. We're gonna meet up at lunch to talk, but we gotta be careful about it. OK?_

Wally thought about that for a minute. The school could be crawling with Teen Ninjas, and he was sure that the Delightful Dorks would be suspicious if they saw their former enemies sitting together in deep conversation when they weren't even meant to know each other.

_Wally Beatles: That's fine. Just hope we don't end up runin intoo enywon we used to no!_

Wally may have been older, but that didn't mean he could spell a lot better!

Hey, at least he didn't use numbers in his spelling anymore.

~(*)~

Hoagie was asleep. Deeply. He snored loudly, as next to him, on his bedside table, his alarm clock opened at the top, produced a mechanical arm, complete with rubber animatronic hand, that proceeded to extend over to him, and begin poking him in the side.

He groaned, but rolled over and pushed the snooze button (more like slapped his hand on top of it, where it just happened to fall onto the snooze button.

But, much to his annoyance, his alarm clock was ready for that, and produced another hand, with a rather large horn attached, and this one, once right up against Hoagie's ear, blared an alarm loud enough to raise the dead, and certainly loud enough to cause his ears to ring.

But, Hoagie still didn't want to get up. He'd had a big night, and he was thinking about faking a sick day just to get out of getting up. But then, when the next phase of the alarm clock's cycle initiated, his eyes shot open and he began trying to clamber out of his sheets, wrestling with the blue and white covers to get out of the clock's way. But, it was too late. The rubber hand reached back inside the clock's body, only to return a few seconds later with a full to the brim pitcher of ice-cold water. Hoagie groaned again, this time louder, as he realised that he wasn't going to be able to get out of the way in time.

_SPLASH!_

'Why the crud did I make it do that, anyway?' He questioned himself, as he squelched his way out of the now soaking duvet, shivering, with water dripping into his pre-goggled eyes from his hair.

Fifteen minutes later, he was dry, dressed and downstairs, with his mother, his annoying grandmother, and "The Tommy." Hoagie chuckled as he remembered how he used to run around the house with that ridiculous cape (which he still did sometimes, actually) and sat down to eat.

He also received a text, just as he had left the door, five minutes after that.

_Abby Lincoln: Hey Hoags! Nigel says we gotta be careful what we say today. He's probably just being paranoid again, but there are a couple of people we don't want to know about this. K?_

Hoagie smiled at Numbuh 5's text. She had called him Hoags again. Well, maybe she had not said it personally, but Numbuh 2 could still hear her voice saying it in his head.

He typed a quick reply.

_Hoagie Gilligan: Sure. Wonder what the Teen Ninjas would do if they found out...? See you at school ;)_

Was the winky face too much? Should he have said 'you _guys' _instead of just 'you'? Too late, he thought, it was already sent.

Oh, well.

He started up his car, and headed off to school, anxious to see how the day would play out.

~(*)~

People were milling around the school hallways, some students leant against lockers, gossiping and giggling, some stressed out over last minute revision, others still would chase each other through the hallways, knocking over any student that happened to cross their path.

Numbuh 5 made her way to her locker, dodging to the side to avoid being hit by Fanny, who, whilst red-faced and clench-jawed, was in hot persuit of Patton, who was carrying a small brown book marked 'diary', laughing hysterically.

Abby shook her head, smiling as she remembered what iit was like seeing Numbuh 86 going on a Numbuh 60-hunt like this one, only sometimes, it was ten times worse.

'Hey, Num- Abby!' Kuki called, saving herself before she used the word that was, by Nigel's decree, forbidden.

'What's up, Kuki?' Abby waved back.

Before she could answer though, Wally strode into the hallway, tossing his bag next to his locker and continuing over to the two girls.

'T'sup, guys?' He greeted, letting himself fall back onto the wall next to them.

'Not much, what about you?' Kuki replied. Wally shrugged, giving a 'not bad' face.

'You going _up _there with us tonight?' Abby asked him, hoping that the emphasis on her words would tell him what she meant.

'Whot tha heck are you talkin' about?' Wally asked, oblivious as per usual. Abby sighed, rolled her eyes.

'I mean, I think the _moon _would be a cool thing to _see _tonight.' Again, she tried, but again, her efforts were fruitless.

'Abby, Ah have _no _idea what you're on about. Whaddaya mean, the _moon?' _

This time, Abby pulled Wally -by the ear, no less- right up to her mouth.

'I _mean, _are you goin' up to_ moonbase_ tonight, _fool!' _she hissed.

'Oooh! Well why didn't you say so?!' Wally

Abby just sighed once more, shaking her head, with her palm over her face.

Nigel and Hoagie walked in next, in deep conversation, not even noticing the countless times that their paths interuppted those of the other students'.

They hardly even seemed to register the presence of Kuki, Wally and Abby, just continuing to walk down the halls as if that was the only thing they came to school to do.

It was only when Abby grabbed Hoagie by the shoulder and span him around to face the group that they both realised their presence.

Hoagie stopped, and, once he had realised that his companion was no longer following him, Nigel did the same. A few seconds passed.

'Oh, hi Abby,' Hoagie said casually, then quickly added, with a nervous cough;

'and -ugh-hm- Kuki and Wally.'

'Hi, Hoagie,' Kuki greeted, pretending that she hadn't noticed Hoagie forgetting that she and Wally were there, knowing full well why that was. She almost smirked

at that thought. It was just like it had been four years ago.

'Hey, guys,' Nigel said, looking slightly more alert than usual, showing everyone else that he was serious about his suspicions; he was somehow convinced that some teen ninja or possibly one of the more evil teachers was recording their conversation.

'You guys got your Algebra assignments done yet?' Abby asked, trying to make conversation.

Nigel froze.

'Guys...?' he started, 'when was that history assignment due?'

Everyone else's eyes grew wide.

'T-today,' Kuki cried. 'It's due today!'

But, before anyone could panic, Hoagie stepped forward.

'I, actually finished it,' he said, his face underneath those yellow-tinted goggles turning a light pink.

'Really? When?' Wally asked, even though he had looked before like he really hadn't cared whether or not the project had been done. He had a lot of unfinished -and never to be finished- schoolwork, and he really didn't mind adding to it.

'Hoagie, you are a saint!' Nigel sighed in relief. Hoagie smirked.

'It's what I do.'

'So, you guys sitting with us at lunch?' Abby asked Hoagie and Wally.

The two of them were more than ready to say yes, but both took a quick glance at Nigel before they did. Their leader's face had a small, unsure frown on it. They all knew that if they sat together, he would be worrying the whole time about what they said, how loud they said it, and even who they said it to. But then, none of them really paid any attention to Nigel's constant alertness anymore; they had lived with it for as long as they had known him.

'Yeah, sure. Not like I have anyone else to sit with now,' Wally replied finally.

'Yeah, about that; what's going on with you and "_The Kidd" _now?' Abby questioned him. Wally's frown grew deeper.

'Pfft. Nothin'. He ratted me out for somethin' Ah didn't do, Ah beat him up for it, and now he hates me. Well, now he hates me _openly_, at least.'

That got a series of slow nods from the rest of the group.

'What about you?' Kuki continued, facing Hoagie. 'You got anything better to do?'

Hoagie just shook his head, not wanting to explain that he would be sitting in the AV room thinking of other modifications he could possibly make to his remote control plane, helicoptor or mercedes benz.

'I'm in,' he said simply.

'Alright then, it's settled. We'll be under the Oak trees next to the oval,' Nigel confirmed. Abby smirked.

'Yeah, way out of the way where _no-one _can hear us.'

'Got that right,' Nigel said, ignoring her chiding of him.

_Brrrrring!_

The bell rang out, sending a new shiver of movement down the hallways as students began to open lockers and pick out books.

'Well, Ah guess we'd better go, then,' Wally groaned, head back against the wall. With the night everyone had had last night, and the amount of sleep they had all gotten, it was no wonder they weren't in the mood to concentrate. They just wanted to go back to the treehouse -go back even though it now belonged to the new sector V- and spend hours and hours and hours talking about everything they had missed about the KND, and about each other for three years, and about everything they could do now that they were back.

But, instead of doing that, escaping the halls that were filled with annoying teens and teens that they knew in a different life and teens that had the freckled, smiling faces of children, now hidden under a thick layer of make-up and hairspray, they headed off to their homerooms, all heaving deep breaths, preparing for what would be a long, _long _day.

Taking a seat in his class, Nigel thought again about the situation that the KND was in. If there was anything they could do to fix it. He wanted to help, but he knew the feeling he had somewhere in his stomach; he wanted an instant sort of solution. Something he could do _now. _But there was nothing he could think of. They didn't even know yet if the results of the turning could be reversed.

He was so engrossed in his own thoughts that he almst didn't notice Lizzie as she sat down beside him. Again. It made him feel uncomfortable with her just sitting there. He never used to have a problem with her sitting next to him. But then, he never really knew her until now.

Now, she wasn't just some girl who he thought maybe had a crush on him, she was a girl who he had a long, _long _history with. A girl he had really gone out with. And a girl who was, at one point, almost killed by his treehouse.

Nigel sighed through his teeth.

But before he knew it, homeroom was over, and it was off to first period; History. Assignment due, and, thanks to Hoagie, they would all be fine for it. He stepped into the room, which was just down the hall from his homeroom.

Everyone else arrived one by one, and each took a seat next to or behind or in front of the other, so that Sector V was sitting all together.

Class started, and the teacher's droning voice somehow seemed to make them feel instantly bored, instantly tired once more. But, they were still together, even if it was school.

'...Do we have any volunteers to show their presentations first?' The teacher dragged on. No hands went up.

'Ha. Volunteers. More like _victims,' _Hoagie joked to the others in a whisper.

And for just one moment, it felt like they were back in the fourth grade, back at Gallagher Elementary, all ten years old again, as if no time had passed since then, nothing had changed.

But then, it all came rushing back, reminding them that they were sixteen now. No longer kids.

But then, "teenager" was always more of an attitude than an age, wasn't it?

**A/N: So? I'm still not sure about this chapter, sorry if you were bored out of your minds. I just needed a chapter or two before I let Wally head off home to Oz, and I needed filler. So, there you go. This is pretty much filler. Oh, and keep those name suggestions coming, if you haven't already! Okay, I'm done! **

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	25. Ch 24, A Dish Best Served Cold

**A/N: Yo, yo, yo! What up, homies? This Numbuh 25, in the hizz-house! You dig? Lol, I can't do that very well, can I? Anyway, review responses!**

**Guest 1: Sentimentality rules! I thought it was a bit sad too, but hey, sometimes this thing just writes itself! I just try to go with the flow and not screw up!**

**Penspot: Because that's just how we Aussies roll! Nah, I dunno why, maybe it's just easier to write/type "Oz" than "Aus", I really don't know. But, we still do it, so, I just do too!**

**MoreThanMeetsTheEye96: That was a great review. Really, it was one of my favourites. I enjoyed writing about Hoagie's crazy alarm clock, and I'm glad you liked it too. I kind of thought; _what would get me up if I really, really didn't want to? _and that's what came to mind. It would be so cool if someone invented that clock though! (not that I would want one, sounds like I would have to get waterproof sheets if I did)**

**Guest 2: Thank-you! Glad you like it, hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**Okay, that's all, keep reading and review after! **

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Chapter 24- A Dish Best Served Cold

'And, that's really all there is,' Kuki finished, looking to the others, who just nodded slowly. There was a quiet, polite applause, and the five of them returned to their seats satisfied with how their presentation for history had gone.

All they really had to do was get up, explain what they had done, and show the video.

After another few presentations, the teacher had gotten sick of the students, and when the bell went, he shooed them out of the classroom with a wave of his hand, not even bothering to look up from his book.

Since the group didn't share any other classes all together, they went on in their own ways. But, Kuki and Hoagie did share the next class together; media. And Abby and Nigel both had biology next. Poor Wally was stuck in english -yay- with his worst nightmare -double yay-.

'Beatles,' Ace greeted viciously as Wally took a seat, even though the blond boy was trying to stay out of the way.

'Kidd,' he replied, keeping his eyes on his desk.

But even with the atmosphere in the room growing thicker than mud, and both of them knowing that a conversation could lead to an open fist fight, Ace still continued to push the boundaries.

'So, off the team, I hear?' he said, his voice sing-song in a cruelly sarcastic way.

'Ah don't really care, Kidd,' Wally said matter-of-factly. Ace just sniggered, with his cronies copying in the background.

'You realise, with you gone, _I _get to be team captain?'

'Still not caring, _Ace,' _Wally's teeth grew tight, and soon he was speaking through a clenched jaw, just straining to keep himself in his seat.

Even with his head bent forward, and his hands balled up so tight he swore he should have broken skin, he could tell that the jerk, who had moved so he was sitting next to Wally, was smirking in sick satisfaction.

'Ace, Ah'm not looking for a fight,' Wally warned, taking deep, hissing breaths through his teeth.

'Well, that's good for you,' the brown-haired boy said, his usual cocky expression clear in his voice. 'but I'm afraid that _I, _on the other hand, may lack the self control that you possess.'

And that was it. Wally couldn't take it any more. He stood up, harshly, sending his chair flying backwards. Ace and his crew made a sort of 'woah-ho-ho!' sound, apparently enjoying Wally's anger, which only feulled the fire in his eyes.

'I have had just about _enough _of you, _Kidd,' _he spat, loudly, so that now everyone was staring. Fortunately for the two boys, though, the teacher had not yet arrived.

'Oh yeah? And what are _you _gonna do about it?'

Something snapped inside Wally. His eyes narrowed, his mind blurred with rage, almost distorting his vision at the edges. He was_ done_ with putting up with him, every time he hit on Kuki, just because he _knew _Wally liked her. Sick and tired of listening to him go on and on about every single little cruddy thing that he could possibly brag about. Just fed up with him, his stupid stuck-up smirk, the dumb, narcisistic act he put on every day. Wally knew that the boy had weaknesses, just as much as Ace knew that Wally himself did. Until now, Wally had tried to put up with it, be the 'bigger person'.

Oh boy, was he gonna enjoy this.

He lunged at Ace, knocking him off his feet while he was busy joking around with the spineless good-for-nothing idiots around him. Throwing a blind punch, Wally missed his target -Kidd's sneering, bragging face- and hit him in the shoulder instead. Ace was dumbstruck, but found it in him to free one of his hands and land a counter attack in Wally's chest. Wally drew back a bit, but that didn't take away from his agression. This was going to end here. Wally didn't even notice all of the people around him, most cheering, with phones out, filming the whole thing with full intention to post it online, a few of them (not many, but a couple) just rolled their eyes and went back to their books.

With the two now rolling around on the floor, Wally, surprisingly, felt a sort of nostalgia at being in a proper fight for the first time in almost four years. Sure, he had had a go at Ace when this whole issue had arisen, but that was as Wally, and he was really the only one who had played any part in that "fight". Now, he was Numbuh 4, and a lot of his old fighting techniques had come back to him, giving him the upper hand. While Ace tried feebly to fight back against Wally, he really had nothing against Numbuh 4's experience, especially since, back in the day, on account of him being so short, had fought against some rivals who were much bigger than him; but, he had gone through his growth spurt by now, and he and Ace were almost equal in height and weight. But not in strength.

Ace had managed to stop the rolling while he was on top, and threw a poor shot aimed at Wally's nose, where it instead clipped the side of his cheek, and under his eye, where it jarred, and Wally felt the area go blunt and almost numb. Mustering up all the power he could find in his arms and legs, he shoved _"The Kidd"_ off him, and pushed him down to the ground, while Wally remained kneeling up over him. He pinned Kidd's arms down with his knees, basically sitting on top of him, and, while the boy underneath him's expression turned from determination to fear, a wild, panicky dread, knowing that there was no way he could get out of what was about to happen. Now, the smirk had moved; it was across Wally's face now, as he glowered down at Ace, his revenge almost satisfactory to him.

'You don't know how long I've waited for this, Ace,' Wally snarled, feeling his reputation building itself back up, his pride restoring, and most importantly, he knew that after today, he would never be bothered by Ace Kidd again.

And with that, Wally's closed fist came down on Ace, hard. Right in the nose, and getting a bit of his right eye as well.

Wally got up off of Ace, where he was greeted with a mixture of responses; obviously Ace's team were scowling at him, but there were also cheers and slaps on the back, and shouts of 'that was awesome, dude!' from the guys, who, evidently, did not all like Mr. I'm-so-cool either. Of the girls, half of them were fighting for space around Ace, calling out in high-pitched whines; 'Ohmigosh, Ace, are you okay!?', 'Ugh, that stupid idiot Wally Bealtes! He's always been a jerk!'

Wally, upon hearing them, laughed out loud. Back when he was football team captain, the girls (the cheerleaders especially) were all over him. Now _that _was annoying.

The other half of the girls, the more sane half probably, were acting similar to the guys;

'Yeah! That was pretty cool, Wally!'

'You rock!'

'I can't believe that just happened.'

But, unfortunately for Wally, Mr. Tessari chose that moment to walk in, holding a handful of folders and a mug of steaming coffe, which he almost dropped upon seeing what was going on in the classroom.

Tables had been shoved out of the way, chairs lay upturned, discarded on the floor, while papers and books spread out all over the room, some torn and scrunched up, some lying in wait, longing to be picked up and put back up on the table.

'_WHAT_ IS GOING ON HERE!?' Mr. Tessari roared, causing twenty-seven heads to snap around to his direction, and fifty-four pairs of eyes to widen in dread. They knew what was about to happen.

'Wally and Ace got into a fight,' someone dobbed. _Coward, _Wally thought.

'_Again?' _Mr. Tessari shot a poisonous look in the direction of the two boys, who were standing, still in fighting stances, in the middle of a ring of dazed students, all staring vacantly at either Ace and Wally or Mr. Tessari, and all looking as stunned as a deer caught in the headlights.

'Kidd, Beatles. My. Office. _Now.'_

That was not a request. That was a downright demand. Scowling, but both with very different emotions spinning around their heads, the boys stalked out of the room.

_You're in trouble now, mate, _Wally told himself.

They were followed curtly by Mr. Tessari, who was fuming, red in the face, leaving a classroom full of students unsure of what to do now.

~(*)~

Kuki took a seat in her Media class, about three quarters of the way back and off to the side, knowing that this would be the best place to sit to be out of the teacher's most concentrated vision.

She didn't think she would be concentrating that much today.

She had almost forgotten that Hoagie was in this class as well, until he went and sat down next to her.

'Hey,' he said.

'Hey.'

He yawned.

'Late night?' Numbuh 3 asked. He just nodded.

'Me too.'

The teacher walked in, and class began, but that didn't stop the two from talking.

After a little more of the simple stuff; 'I'm so tired,' and 'we have too much homework,' Hoagie looked at her with an expression that was some mixture of being troubled, unsure and thoughtful. He waited a few seconds after opening his mouth before he spoke.

'D- do you remember when me and Abby were- were... y'know...'

Kuki smiled, amused by her friends awkwardness.

'Yeah. I do,' she replied.

'Okay. Uhm, well, do you think that she would maybe, I dunno, want to... to be that... again?' His face was red, and his voice was lower than usual. He was afraid that if anyone overheard him talking about going out with Abby, they would just laugh until he fled from the classroom.

Kuki's smile grew. She had a feeling that the two were still hot for each other, and now she knew.

'Hoagie,' she said, turning to face him completely, looking him directly in his yellow-tinted eyes.

'All you need to do is ask her out. Just do it. She _will _say yes.'

He looked like a stunned mullet.

'Wh-w-what?' He stuttered, swallowing hard. Shaking her head affectionately, but all the while still smiling, Kuki replied truthfully;

'Hoagie, I know Abby as well as I know myself. And I know for a _fact _that you are the only guy she has ever gone crazy for.'

She could almost feel his elation, his face lit up, his eyes shone, and his mouth twisted into a small, yet extremely excited smile.

'Really?!' he cried, forgetting that he was meant to be talking quietly.

'Hoagie Gilligan!'

'Sorry, Miss Tanner.'

Kuki had to bite her lip to avoid giggling too loud.

'Yep,' she confirmed. But there was more.

'Let me tell you something, Hoagie,' she said, launching into a story, but keeping her eyes forward, and moving her lips as little as possible, so as to avoid being caught by the middle-aged woman at the front of the classroom.

_Flashback_

Kuki and Abby were in Kuki's room, at her house, not in the treehouse, surprisingly. It was way back before the war, back when they were both just eleven years old. Abby was lying on her stomach on her sleeping bag, sleeping over at her friend's house for the night.

'So, truth or dare?' Numbuh 3 asked, thinking of something humiliating for either option. She had on her pink rainbow monkey pyjamas, complete with matching slippers (they even squeaked when you stepped on them).

Abby 'hmm'd, frowned in thought and then answered;

'Truth.'

'Well, it makes sense. You chose Dare, like, ten times in a row!'

'Just ask the question, Kooks.'

'Okay, then...' after a few seconds, Kuki had made up her mind.

'Do you like Numbuh 2?' she asked with a giggle.

Numbuh 5 immediately began to stall.

'What? Wh-why would you ask that? I mean, why not ask something like 'what's your most embarressing moment?' I'll answer that one. It's-'

'_Abby. _I already know your most embarressing moment. You walked around all day with toilet paper on your shoe. Now, _do you like Hoagie?'_

This was fun for Numbuh 3 to watch. She had never seen her best friend acting so worried, so awkward. She smirked.

'I- I mean, sure I like Hoagie. I've known him since we were five!'

That was more stalling.

'You know what I mean Numbuh 5. Not that like, the other _like.'_

Abby's eyes darted around the room, trying to find something to take this conversation elsewhere. But what she didn't know, or maybe couldn't avoid, is that all the time she spent dodging the question, Kuki was just becoming more and more certain of the answer.

'I- uhmm, I...' Abby looked close to cracking, her face flushing red under her dark skin.

'_Okay! _Yes, I do like him! I don't know why, I just- he's so sweet and he- don't get me wrong, I _hate _the jokes, but- but I love them at the same time! And I like _him! _..a lot.' She added the last bit quietly. Kuki squealed like the girly-girl she was.

'Ahh! I knew it! Aww, you would be so cute together!'

Abby sighed, defeated by the power of truth or dare.

'Before you give me the '_aww' _speech,' she warned, 'let me assure you that _nothing _is going to happen. He doesn't like me.'

But little did she know, that Kuki already knew that wasn't true. It was obvious to her that Hoagie liked Abby as well, but apparently it was just her who noticed.

But even Kuki didn't know what was coming next.

_End Flashback_

'Really? She told you that?' Kuki had never seen Hoagie this delighted at anything.

'Completely true. I remember it like it was yesterday.'

Kuki and Hoagie finally started to listen to the teacher, but all the while, Kuki could see the little fist pump that Hoagie did half-under his desk. She smiled once again, knowing that -as soon as Hoagie gathered up the courage- two of her closest friends would be together again, just like they used to.

~(*)~

'So what is this bullfrog thing meant to be teching us again?' Abby murmered to Nigel, while they were both staring at the board like it was all in another language (which would have been fine had it been in French class, but it was Biology so...). It was like their eyes had translucent curtains in front of them, they saw the board, but they just couldn't bring themselves to comprehend anything on it.

'I'm going to level with you here,' Nigel began, seeming as if he was about to collapse from exhaustion and boredom at any second.

'I really don't care.'

They started to drift from the subject of school, instead floating around from current events, music, friends, and finally, as it inevitably was going to, relationships; in particular, past relationships.

'So, Lizzie sat next to you in History, huh?' Abby asked, knowing the answer, and trying to make her friend uncomfortable. She succeeded.

'Yeah. Have you ever noticed that she wears a _lot _of pefume?' Nigel replied, making a weird face as he remembered how awkward he felt sitting next to her. He tried not to look at her, but couldn't help just a few glances.

'Come on, boy! Everyone knows that! You can smell her coming all the way from the gym when she's in the library!'

Nigel laughed quietly. That was sort of true.

The truth was, that even though Nigel may have had a 'thing' for Lizzie six years ago, when they were ten years old, now he just didn't feel it. Maybe it was how she'd changed; she now looked like she spent hours on her make-up and hair in the morning, and her clothes were always straight out of the newest catalogues. That was something that Nigel didn't want in a girl. He wanted a _real _girl, who cared more about her future than about how many calories there are in the pizza in the school cafeteria. Someone like... you know. But before he could get himself to mentally admit it, Abby spoke up for him.

'She's really not such a good pick now, is she? Not that she ever was... but you know who _is _a good pick? Rachel!'

Nigel gulped, and felt himself blushing. He knew that Numbuh 5 knew about his crush, and everyone else as well, but it was still embarressing having anyone talk about it.

But, wait!

There was something that Nigel had to retalliate with.

'You know who _else _is a good pick?' He asked, smirking lightly.

Abby gave him a confused frown.

'_Hoagie,' _Nigel taunted, now pleased with himself for having saved all the teasing from being directed on him. At least now Abby would get some of it too.

'What? He- I mean I- uhm, _we_... you're just covering up!' She stumbled indignantly, acting out of character, just like Nigel knew that love made anyone and everyone do.

'Yeah, but it's still true!' he shot back, now smiling wider.

'You _like _him.'

'So?'

'So you like him!'

'Yeah, so?'

It went on like this for a while, back and forth between the two. Sometimes it would be Abby doing the attacking, making fun of Nigel for liking their former Soopreme Leader, and sometimes it was Nigel poking at Abby for her not-officially-ended, no-one-knows-what's-going-on-with-it relationship with Hoagie. In the end, they both confessed, and there was nothing to argue about anymore, so boredom once again took hold.

'You ever gonna ask her out?' Numbuh 5 asked Numbuh 1, reffering to Rachel. Nigel screwed up his face in thought.

'I _want _to,' he finally said.

'Well then do it!'

'Uhhhh...'

And now there was something new to argue over.

'Well, why don't _you_ ask _Hoagie _out?'

'That's different and you know it!'

'Oh is it now?'

'Yeah, it is!'

They were eventually going to get caught up by the teacher, who would give them a scolding for talking, arguing, laughing in class, but they didn't care. Their childish quarrels were fun.

Things were just starting out for them, it seemed. Life as a teenager, and life as a Kid Next Door, they weren't just going to fit in together like jigsaw pieces, right?

There were holes in the puzzle, holes that they would have to fill, and bumps they would have to smooth out.

**A/N: I liked writing that chapter.**

**Dunno why.**

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	26. Ch 25, Going Public

**A/N: Hey! Not much to say about this chapter, but read! Lately, I have been working on a lot of other stories (all KND, of course) and I have only finished one of them. Huh. You can read it if you want. It's a 2X5 one-shot, called 'Hot Chocolate and Cookies.' And I've been working on a couple more one-shots. And another big project, which will be revealed once this story is over!**

**AH! I want to tell you, I'm really excited about it! Okay, I can't keep it in! It's- **gagged and chained****

**Abby: Uh sorry guys. She's not allowed to tell you any of that.**

**Wally: Yeah. And if she does, there are gonna be confidences!**

**Hoagie: Don't you mean '_consequences'?_**

**Wally: Whatever. **

Now Loading...

Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 25- Going Public

Lunchtime, and Nigel, Hoagie, Kuki and Abby were sitting at a table in the cafeteria, prodding at their lunches.

'Where's Wally?' Kuki asked, looking up from her tray.

The others frowned in thought.

'I haven't seen him since History,' Hoagie replied, wondering where he might have gotten to.

But at that exact moment, as if on cue, the missing boy made his way up to the table.

'Look who decided to- hang on, what happened to you, boy?' Abby said, cutting off one train of thought as she noticed the bruises and scratches that scattered Wally's face. He should probably have been trying to conceal them in some way, probably should have been ashamed but he wasn't. He was happy with himself.

'Ah finally got revenge on Ace,' he said proudly, which got him a response of raised eyebrows.

'And how much trouble did you get into for it?' Nigel questioned, almost laughing at Wally's swagger, which was now back to normal after taking down his mortal enemy.

'Enough ta almost get me suspended,' Wally began, still not phased,

'But not enough ta make it not worth all tha yellin'.'

The others nodded slowly, all thinking the same thing;

_What are we going to do with him?_

'Alright, so moving on,' Hoagie said suddenly, trying to get the conversation up and running again. 'What are we doing for christmas?'

'Well, Ah'm off ta Australia in a bit unda two weeks,' Wally answered straight away, looking even more happy than before.

'And school finishes two days before that,' Kuki added.

'So, are we gonna do something?' Abby interjected, hoping that all of this would actually go somewhere.

'How about a kris-kringle?' Nigel suggested, poking at some sort of limp vegetable at the end of his fork. 'It makes it easier, so we don't each have to buy four presents.'

Everyone seemed to like that idea. By the end of lunch, they had agreed that the names would be drawn that afternoon, before they headed up to moonbase to talk with Robert and Joey and any other operative who wanted to be there.

The rest of the day passed much like the morning had; boring, boring and more boring. And by the time the last period had begun, everyone felt like they could just fall asleep standing up.

But their energy levels were revived once the end bell rang, and the stampede for the doors began.

~(*)~

It was 3:07 exactly, and Sector V senior were outside the treehouse, with all of their names stuffed inside Abby's hat, ready to be picked.

'Who wants to go first?'

'I will!' Kuki cried enthusiastically. She squinted her eyes closed, something she was all but used to, and stirred the little scraps of paper around with her hand before finally picking one out. Her eyes glittered with excitement as she unfolded it, but then switched to confusion.

'Uh, what do I do if I pick myself?' she asked. The others only laughed, and told her to pick again. So, the whole routine was repeated. And she picked out herself again.

So, third time lucky, she peeked at the note, and found Hoagie's name written across it, in Nigel's not-so-neat handwriting.

'Alright then, I'll go next,' Hoagie said, reaching into the hat and pulling out the paper at the very bottom.

It was Kuki.

He found himself a little disappointed, as he had had something in mind for Abby that he was kind of hoping to give her. Would he be able to do that, to give her something outside of the kris-kringle thing? He didn't know, but he hoped so.

Nigel went next, pulling out Wally.

Then Abby, who got Nigel, then Wally, who obviously got Abby.

He was also a little let down at not picking Kuki, but also kind of relieved. He wouldn't really know _what _to do if he had.

'Okay, so that's all done, now onto the next order of buisiness. What's going on with everyone? Noticed anything interesting?' Numbuh 1 (not surprisingly) asked.

'Geez, Numbuh 1, lighten up,' Hoagie said, smirking. 'Anyway, I'd rather hear about _Lizzie!'_

Abby laughed loudly, holding up her closed hand for a fist-bump, which Numbuh 2 (albeit a little shyly) acceppted it happily.

Nigel scowled, refusing to answer through the team's giggling.

'Ha! But seriously, it has been kind of weird,' Kuki said finally, straightening up from where she'd slid down the tree in her mirth. 'You know, sometimes I forget that nobody else remembers, and I have to stop myself from blabbing. I passed Fanny in the hallways today, and almost ended up calling her Numbuh 86.'

The others nodded, but there was obviously something that everyone had on their mind. There was silence for a while, with no-one wanting to admit to their thoughts, in case the thing that they thought everyone was thinking was really what only _they _were thinking. But finally, Wally spoke up.

'I-I kind of want to bring them back,' he said, looking at the ground. Immediately there was a chorus of 'me too's.

'But we can't, right? I mean, it would be _way _off-limits. Think about how crazy the other operatives are gonna go tonight when they find out about us!' Abby made the negative case, but the look on her face said that she wanted all their comnrades back, all the people from their generation.

Needless to say, everyone was a bit nervous about the meeting that night.

All the other KND operatives were going to be there. And Sector V were going to be unveiled to them. Nobody knew what reaction they were going to receive, but they all just hoped they were positive.

It was then that the younger Sector V arrived, all together, and all on their bikes. Of course, they were all tricked out, rocket engines on the back, gear systems built into the handlebars.

'Hey!' Joey called, hopping off his bike and letting it fall to the ground, running over to the base of the tree where the other five were standing.

'What's up, Joey?' His brother called back, ruffling the little boy's hair as he stopped in front of him.

'Are we ready to go?' Numbuh 505 asked, also dismounting her bike and wheeling it over with a tired sigh.

'Yeah. Where's the ship?' Kuki asked, looking up to the treehouse. When she had last been there, when little Nigel the cat had lead her there, Abby had been waiting. They had sat there, talked, then left. Nothing special. Nothing amazing, but it was still a significant part of the reason she was there as Numbuh 3 today. Without that day, her memories might not have been so close to the surface, and so, she might not have been pushed over the edge when Nigel and Hoagie had taken her into the SCAMPER that day.

'Up in the treehouse. We'll feul up and then go straight afterwards, if that's okay.'

Nigel nodded.

'Yes, that should be fine. It'll give us a bit of time to look around the place before we leave,' he said, looking eager to get back to his room. Come to think of it, so did Wally and Hoagie. They kept looking up at the treehouse, with faraway looks on their faces. Abby and Kuki exchanged a glance. Even though they had been up there only days ago, that was before... everything. It would be so much better to go up there and actually know what the heck was going on, and to be able to enjoy it instead of treating it like a half-dream.

Not to mention the headachey-vision thingys.

Everyone began to make their way up the tree, with half of them in the elevator and the other half waiting for the next one to come down. Obviously, not all of them would fit in on one load.

By the time the last load (the younger Sector V) were up there, all the older operatives were already in full swing of their 'blast-from-the-past' tour of the treehouse. Each of them had promptly run off to his or her own room as soon as the elevator door had opened. Now, they were in the middle of searching through the other main rooms; the TV room, the Briefing room, the kitchen, all the other places that had memories attatched. Over here was where Kuki had nearly got concussion falling over the side of the balcony (and everyone else had almost died laughing as she freaked out), and there was the couch on which Wally had been beaten a record two gajillion times in a row at _Space Intruders 4. _There was the terrace where Abby and Hoagie had first used the 'L' word, and the TV where Nigel had watched KND nightly news, every night, without fail.Everything there, it seemed, had sentimental value. It made the team feel even more lucky to be back.

But then, all too soon, it was time to leave for Moonbase. They said their silent goodbyes to the old, creaky floorboards that they loved so much, and boarded the SCAMPER, where Numbuhs 2 and 202 kicked it into gear hastily, and they set off.

~(*)~

It was 4:45 by the time they arrived at Moonbase, nerves wavering all around inside them. The brightly red-lit treehouse just shone back at them. It still kept that exact same shade, that exact intensity, even though they were now teens, it was all the same.

Once inside, the members of Sector V junior lead their predecessors up to Numbuh 263's office, where he was leaning back on his chair in frustration, exhaustion, nerves, with his eyes closed.

'Uhm, Numbuh 263, sir? We're here. When does the meeting start?' Numbuh 303 called out to him, her voice showing concern. Robert stirred, then stopped for a few seconds, before finally heaving his eyes open as though they were made of concrete, and he looked at everyone through tired lids.

'Hi guys,' he said plainly, with a slight yawn.

'Hey. So, when does the meeting start?' Numbuh 121 said, leaning on his desk.

Robert checked the clock on his desk.

'About eleven minutes.'

'Well, shouldn't you be up?'

'Yep.'

He finally got up, reluctantly, stretching out his limbs and standing up groggily.

'Let's head off to the arena then,' he sighed, beginning across the room towards the door. The others followed, and five minutes later, they were in the middle of the arena, looking around at the billions of seats.

_The worst thing about being here, _Hoagie thought sadly, _is that only a fraction of these seats will be filled, when it should be all of them._

'Okay, so people should start arriving in about another five minutes. Robert, you ready with your speech?' Olivia, Numbuh 505 asked, hopping up onto one of the couches behind the lectrum.

'Mm. Yeah. I just don't know how the remaining operatives are gonna react.'

At this point, Numbuh 202 stood up.

'What? Of course we know how they're gonna react!' he cried, in shock.

'These kids have been waiting _months _for someone -anything- to give them back their hope. And even though most of them may not know what Sector V _looks _like, they all know who they are. They are all gonna be_ extatic _to find out that what they've been waiting for, that their hope is back. They're going to love it, _trust me.'_

Everyone else agreed, and that seemed to give Robert a little more peace of mind. So, they waited the few remaining moments -that felt like years, by the way- people started filtering in. It took a surprisingly short amount of time until everyone was seated. It felt like there should have taken a lot longer. Every meeting, every anonuncement and convention that Sector V had ever been to, they had to resort to being early to the gatherings, just to get a good seat.

The dwindling population of Kids Next Door, the tired, helpless expressions of the kids, the huge mass of empty seats that seemed to overpower the atmosphere of the room, they all combined, and suddenly, the mood in the room became very heavy.

Once everyone was seated and ready to listen, Robert took his place a the stand onstage. He heaved a deep sigh, then cleared his throat.

'Kids Next Door Rules!' He yelled. The few operatives who were still active repeated, and the older kids there were also a little reassured to see that even with their situation, that same fire was still in their eyes, that same indestructable determination as they bellowed out their battle cry.

Then, it was time for Robert to spill his guts about everything.

'My fellow Kids Next Door, first of all, I just want to commend you all for the way you have handled this epidemic. We have not given in yet, not let the adults force us into submission, and I want to thank you all for that. You are the reason that we are still up and running.'

The kids smiled, albeit a little sadly, as they remembered all their friends and teammates that had suffered the effects of the turning.

'But now, as I'm sure you've already heard, we have some... uhm, new faces around the Moonbase, and I know that you're all curious to find out who they are, and more importantly, why they're here.'

There was a murmer of approval, as Sector V received a few dirty looks from some of the kids out there. Others, though, as they recognised them, smiled, or rolled their eyes at the ones who were eyeballing their heroes.

'Look guys, I know you've been waiting for a hero, and now... well, now, I give you five. Kids Next Door operatives, I give you, the newly recommissioned, Sector V!'

And with that, Robert stepped aside to let Sector V stand and speak.

And the crowd went wild.

Suddenly, the hostile faces of the younger agents evaporated, and they stared in awe, before erupting, in wild applause and crazy screaming, whistling, whooping, anything. They knew that these guys were the best, and now, they were here to save them.

Numbuh 1 took the stand first, and smiled as he began to address the kids out there.

'Hello, fellow operatives. For the ones who don't recognise me, I am Numbuh 1, Nigel Uno, the leader of Sector V. I'm going to keep this short, so that the rest of my team can say a few words as well. I just want to say that it is an _honor _to be back, fighting for the kids once more, and I know that we can get to the bottom of this. Thank you.'

Nigel's face was serious, but still deeply, deeply satisfied.

Then, it was Hoagie's turn to take the stage. He looked a little nervous as he stood at the podium, swallowing hard.

'Uhm, h-hi, everyone,' he began, turning red.

'I'm Numbuh 2, uh- Hoagie Gilligan, and.. I don't have much to say, except that I'm just really, _really _happy to be back, and if anyone wants me, I'll be in the lab for about the next three weeks, trying to figure this whole thing out. Alright, that's all from me. I wouldn't want to _turn _you off the subject!'

He just couldn't resist. He walked back to the couch, copping a slap courtesy of Abby's hat, and Kuki took the stage, beaming brightly.

'Hey!' She began, waving to the roughly seventy-five kids who were sitting in the arena.

'My name is Kuki Sanban, I'm Numbuh 3, and I can't believe that I'm back here after three whole years!' Then, her expression sobered.

'But really, guys, I know that you've all been having a hard time lately, but we're gonna try as hard as we can to fix it. Okay?'

And with that, she skipped back to the couch. Wally stood, walked over to the stand, and looked out at everyone there. Only minutes ago, harsh faces had hit them head-on. But now, they were all wide-eyed and listening with every fibre of their being. _Ha, _he thought to himself with a smirk, _that just goes to show you._

'Hi, guys. Ah'm Wally, Numbuh 4, and, well, here Ah am. Isn't that really it? My brotha brought me back- uh, with tha help of his team and Numbuh 263, of course, and Ah could not be more proud of 'im. We're gonna take down these cruddy adults, just you wait.' There was a few seconds of silence.

'Uhm, Ah'm done.'

So, Wally left the centre stage, and Abby took his place. She, also, took a deep breath before speaking.

'Well, hi again everybody. Or hi again to some people, for others, this is hi for the first time. I'm Abby Lincoln, Numbuh 5, and I just gotta say that I am _amazed _that you guys are still doing so well. Sure, you may not have your whole teams with you, but the important thing is that you still believe you can get them back. And as long as you keep that belief, that's just what we're gonna do. Not just us,' -she gestured behind her to her team- 'but every single one of you. The Kids Next Door has pulled through a situation not too unlike this one back when we were kids as well, and I remember not just the evil faces, not just the despair, but I also remember the hope, and the determination. I see that spirit in all of you, right here, right now. And I know that this is going to work out. You're all going to see your teams, your friends, again. Thanks, guys.'

Instead of making her way back to the couch, she stopped halfway, and turned around to face everyone. She was joined by Numbuhs 1, 2, 3 and 4, and Robert took the stage once more.

'My fellow Kids Next Door, once again, I thank you and admire you for your courage through these dark times, and once again, I present Sector V. They may be a little older, but they've still got it.'

The team smiled, feeling something rush through them all. It was that flame, that spark that only appeared when a wave of courage had swept over them all. That feeling you only got when you had just pulled yourself and everyone around you out of a pit of lost hope. When the reason to fight came back.

And so, finally, Robert ended the meeting, raising his clenched fist, and smiling that same smile as he cried;

'_Kids Next Door RULES!'_

The stadium copied, and for a second, their voices were not those of only a fraction of their population, but they were the voices as strong as if they'd all been there; turned operatives or not.

And the best part was, Sector V got to join in, hear their own voices mixed in there once more. Finally after years, they were back where they knew that they would be part of something big.

And it felt good.

~(*)~

After the meeting, Sector V ended up having dinner in the Moonbase cafeteria. It was fun to sit amongst all the other kids, even if their barrage of questions was a tiny bit overwhelming.

Abby wasn't hungry though. She poked around the food on her plate, her head too full of thoughts to make room for concerns about food. So, she ate the little amount that she wanted to, before excusing herself, and heading straight up to the observation deck, finding herself craving the view of the stars suddenly.

Hoagie ate a full dinner, on the other hand, and went back in for seconds. When he returned, and noticed that Abby was gone, he frowned in concern, and went to ask Nigel, who was sitting next to him, what was up.

Nigel shrugged.

'I think she just wanted some time to think,' he said, twisting some spaghetti around his fork. Kuki, who was on Hoagie's other side, heard this, and proceeded to elbow him in the side for his attention.

'_Ow! _What was_ that_ for?' he asked indignantly, holding his side.

'_Abby's alone. Go ask her now,' _Kuki whispered, wondering if Hoagie could sum up the courage to do so.

'_What?! I can't! What if she says no?'_

_'Hoagie, remember what I told you in class? She will say yes, trust me. Now go!'_

And with that, Kuki shoved him off the bench, and promptly scooted over, so she took up his space, making it impossible for him to sit back down.

'_Good luck. And __don't__ chicken out!' _She whispered to him, as he got up and reluctantly walked away.

_Great, _he thought. _This should be fun. _He was already nervous, already had that fluttery feeling in his stomach. But wait! Kuki hadn't even told him where Abby was!

Even so, Hoagie could guess where she would have gone. And that's just where he would have gone as well.

He reached the door to the observatory, and saw her, lying on her back, just looking out at all the little white pinpoints in the inky sky. She looked so peaceful, with her hat off, dropped beside her. It wasn't often that she took that hat off. Hoagie didn't think he could go in there. His heart was now pounding, his hands shaking, and his breath was becoming rapidly quicker. He was about to turn away, but then changed his mind. But then, he turned around again, then back, then forward, fighting with himself. Finally, after a couple minutes of arguing, trying to convince himself to just open that door, he finally did it, without really thinking.

Abby turned over to lie on her stomach when she heard the door creak open.

'Oh, hey Hoags' she said, smiling calmly at him, though inside her nerves had just jumped ten feet into the air.

'H-hey,' Hoagie stammered. He walked over to Abby, still unsure of himself, and sat down beside her.

'What's up?' They both said at the same time, before laughing awkwardly.

'You go first,' Hoagie said.

'Numbuh 5 just wanted to come up here. Just to think. Y'know,' Abby said, rolling back onto her back. Hoagie nodded thoughtfully.

'This is a good place to think,' he said.

There was a silence between them for a while, and with each passing second, they were both growing more nervous, their heart rated rising. Finally, when the quiet was too much for Hoagie to take any more of, he tried to do it.

'Uh, listen, Abby. I was wondering if, maybe, you -uhm- you wanted.. I mean, only if you _want _to, uh, maybe, on Friday, uhm, do you wanna.. do you want to maybe see a movie with me?' His face was as red as a tomato, his heart was hammering so hard he thought it was about to break out of his chest, and he was actually beginning to sweat. But it was out there. Finally. And he waited anxiously, in the the seconds that felt like three centuries, for Abby's answer.

The girl sat up, turned to face Hoagie, and looked him in the eye, giving him a soft, meaningful smile.

'Of course, Hoagie. Abby'd love to go out with you.'

Hoagie actually got lightheaded at that moment. He felt dizzy with relief and joy, and it took a few seconds to bring everything back into focus. It was happening! _He _was going out with _her! _SHE HAD SAID YES. He wanted to yell out loud in happiness, but instead, he just lay down and looked up at the sky.

After a while, Abby layed back down as well, facing in the opposite direction to Hoagie, so that their heads were level, but they were facing different ways. But they both saw the huge unfurling that was the night sky, and they both felt a warm satisfaction in their hearts. Only problem was that they'd have to wait until Friday to be alone again.

They didn't want to leave the deck that night. They could have stayed there for years.

But unfortunately, once they'd gotten up, almost an hour after Abby had first gone up, it was down to buisiness.

The organisation wasn't just going to rescue itself, right?

And as soon as they had left, and entered a hectic world where one wrong move could lead to dire consequences, they immediately missed the serenity of the observation deck.

And the contentment being with each other.

**A/N: Wow. Fourteen pages. At first I though I was barely gonna make it to ten. Did you like it? I enjoyed writing that one. Especially the last bit! ;)**

**Bye!**

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	27. Ch 26, Relationship Revived?

**A/N: Hoagie and Abby's date starts now!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own KND, or any of the original characters. If I did, I would have put more of Patton in it (yeah, I'm a bit of a Patton fangirl... but Hoagie and Abby will always be my favourite operatives)**

**Shoutout to Numbuh 1X1- Keep those ideas coming! This is gonna be awesome! You know what I'm talkin' about ;)**

**MoreThanMeetsTheEye96: Thank-you so much! Yeah, I am also kinda proud of myself for making it this far! But it's really the people like you who motivate me, so I think _you_'re the one _I _should be thanking! THANK-YOU! ;)**

**Penspot: It's fine, glad you liked it. It's sad when school and education and life and unimportant things like that get in the way of what _is_ really important; READING FANFICTION!**

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 26- Relationship Revived?

Two days had passed since the meeting on Moonbase, and all through those two days, Sector V had been hard at work, almost constantly on the clock. Numbuh 2 was in the lab for every waking minute he was out of school, and as a result, had lost a lot of sleep. As had everyone else. The rest of the team had spent both nights up way too late, investigating everything- from turned operatives to possible connections to Dr. Colter.

It was Friday morning, when Abby and Kuki were leaning against the lockers and talking. Kuki, who was being the girly-girl she had always been, had almost deafened Abby with her squeal once Numbuh 5 had told her about her date with Hoagie.

'So, what are you gonna wear?' she asked, bouncing up and down. Abby shrugged.

'Jeans, maybe,' she said casually. Kuki drew in a deep gasp, as if Abby had just said something extremely rude.

'_What?!_' she cried, her face shocked. 'You can't just wear _jeans! _Haven't you got a dress or something you can wear?'

Abby looked at her like she was crazy.

'Me? Own a dress? You feelin' alright, girl?'

'Well, you're sure as heck not going in _jeans. _So after school tonight, we are going _shopping!' _Kuki squealed again. Abby groaned, her head sagged.

But it was still happening. Once Kuki had her mind set on shopping, there as no way you could get her off it.

So, the rest of the day was boring, for both girls. Kuki was just bored because she couldn't wait for that final bell to go. It had been so long since she had been on a shopping spree, and it wasn't often that she could convince Abby to do something girly with her. She could not _wait _until she could see Abby in a dress, with make-up on... and she couldn't refuse. Oh no, Kuki would make sure she couldn't get out of it. Abby was just bored, tired and bored. The last thing in the _world _she wanted to do was to go shopping (okay, maybe the last thing she wanted was to wear a dress, but still..), though she knew that Kuki was not going to let her worm her way out of it.

_Brrring! Brrring! Brrring!_

The end of school. 2:45pm, and exactly four hours and fifteen minutes until Hoagie was meant to arrive at Abby's house to pick her up. Abby got butterflies in her stomach every time she thought about it. To be honest, she was shocked when Hoagie had gather up the courage to ask her out in the first place. But she also couldn't have been happier.

Kuki and Abby both drove their cars to the mall, so that they didn't have to go back to the school carpark after they'd finished.

The mall was full of stores, many of them places that Abby wouldn't have minded going into; places that sold t-shirts, leggings and other non-girly things. But Kuki had to drag her straight to her own favourite shop; _Teen Talk._

Abby stopped dead at the storefront.

'You have _got _to be kidding me,' she deadpanned.

Kuki just rolled her eyes and dragged her friend in, her eyes already peeled for any dresses that might look good on Abby (or herself, for that matter).

'Hello, can I help you?' One of the store clerks, a girl dressed in a grey-green t-shirt and fluro yellow skirt, came up to them. Even though her skirt, and the matching shoes and earrings, may have blinded some people with the brightness of their colour, they were the 'in' colours for the season, and so, she was obviously willing to risk temporary loss of sight.

'Oh, no thank-you. We're just gonna have a look around,' Kuki replied, returning the assistant's friendly smile.

Abby, though dreading the thought of having to try on any of these things, had come to the decision that, if she just submitted and let Kuki do her thing, she might be able to get out without having to model the entire store's inventory. So, without a protest, but her face still showing reluctance, she followed Kuki through the racks upon racks of clothing.

The shorter, paler girl stopped every once in a while, to pick out a dress from a rack, hold it up against Abby, before either hanging it back on its rack and frowning in disapproval, or adding it to her growing pile of outfits draped over her arm.

After a while, Kuki couldn't carry any more, and so it was off to the changing rooms. She dumped a huge pile of clothes on Abby, and told her to start going through them, pushing her into a cubicle.

Abby muttered to herself as she pulled out the top dress, then proceeding to change into it. It was black, with a silver belt, and Abby didn't like it much. Apparently, Kuki felt the same way, as, when she opened the door cautiously, she received a quick shake of the head and was sent back in.

And so, it began;

'Too short.'

Next.

'Too long.'

Next.

'Too dull.'

Next.

'Ugh, too bright.'

Next.

'What's with the feathers? You look like a peacock.'

Next, next, next.

And finally, there was only one left. Abby sighed, and put it on. Finally, it was over. She didn't feel like a doll anymore, her outfit changing and changing and changing again.

She walked out of the cubicle, and frowned slightly in confusion as Kuki gasped.

'This is the one!'

Was it?

Abby looked at herself in the mirror.

Her dress was the same deep blue as most of her clothes, coming down to above the knee, made out of many layered pieces of thin, flowing, semi see-through fabric. It wasn't too tight, but wasn't too baggy, either. It had thick straps that went straight around her shoulders, and a bold red belt at the middle. Abby herself almost gasped at the girl she saw in the mirror. Whoever the heck she was, it sure wasn't Abigail Lincoln.

Or was it?

She had to admit, the dress did give her a funny sort of feeling. She was just having trouble figuring out if that feeling was good or bad. Kuki, however, was acting like it was the greatest thing in the world.

'Ohmigosh, Abby you look so beautiful!' She squealed, hopping from foot to foot.

'Hoagie is gonna go _crazy _when he sees you!'

Abby blushed slightly, not sure of what to say. But her friend didn't seem to notice. She just shot out something in rapid fire about 'finding some shoes' and left Abby to change back into her normal clothes and take the dress to the counter to pay.

In half an hour, most of it spent looking around shoe stores and listening to Kuki swoon at every second pair, they had found a nice set. Not high heels, though. _That _was where Abby drew the line.

The shoes were red, to go with the belt and Abby's hat, ballet flats with the tiniest wedge heel they could find at the back. And by that time, it was 4:15 and were finally done at the mall, and boy, was Abby grateful for that. But, it didn't end there. And the dark-skinned girl knew that all too well.

'Time for make-up!'

Yay.

Abby drove back to her house, while Kuki went back to her own to pick up her makeup bag.

When Kuki burst into Abby's room fifteen minutes later, Abby had music playing on her speakers, and looked like she was about ready to protest about something.

'Kuki, Abby reeeally doesn't think she needs-'

'Nonsense. You're putting makeup on, Abby. Now sit still.'

It took half an hour of holding Abby down and keeping her from moving, but Kuki finally got some makeup on her. Some lipstick, blush and eyeshadow. She could have done a lot more if the girl had been willing to sit there and have it done, but, the only way that would happen with Abby is if she was asleep at the time.

But despite the struggling, Numbuh 3 actually did a pretty good job on her. Once her friend had stood up from her bed, Kuki clapped her hands in glee. She had never seen her look.. like this.

'Yes! That's perfect! Now we've just got your hair!'

_When will this end? Haven't I been through enough already?_

But in the background, Kuki was chattering away like there was no tomorrow.

'We'll make it simple; I don't think complicated suits you very well. Hm. Maybe half-up half-down? No, no. Uhhm...'

And then, Abby began to feel like a mannequin again. Kuki tried countless hairstyles on her, pulling and tying and plaiting and hairspraying. Finally, though, after what felt like forever, she finished.

Abby had convinced her to go with the simplest thing she could; a _simple _high ponytail. But Kuki had at least gotten to braid one little strand of hair. But by that time, it was getting closer to their deadline. 5:45. Fifteen minutes to go. Just enough time to put on the dress and the shoes and struggle a touch more makeup on.

Abby's nerves were starting to flutter. She didn't usually get like this. But then, with Hoagie, nothing for her was ever 'usual'. He had always been different.

He would be there any minute, Abby thought, rolling her eyes while Kuki took snapshots of her with her phone, doing her girly-girl squeal-dance combo in the background.

~(*)~

_Oh my god, I have never been this nervous in my life. I feel like I'm about to pass out. Am I hyperventilating? I can't even tell._

Hoagie had spent all of that day wondering about that night, and now, he felt like he could lose conciousness at any second. He had pulled out his whole wardrobe looking for something to wear, and then gone through it again, just to make sure. He had finally, after much debating, decided on some dark black jeans, a white t-shirt and an overshirt of a darker blue than he was used to. Wally had been there too, and Nigel as well, but Hoagie guessed they were there mostly so they could see him freaking out at full scale (and to get a couple free sodas), and had no real intention of 'helping'. They just laughed at his nerves, which put them on the receiving end of a death stare or two, not to mention some cracks of 'Yeah? Well, at least I worked up the guts to actually _ask _the girlI like out. More than I can say for _you two.'_

That silenced them.

Once it came time to leave, though, they started laughing again. Even Nigel had cracked up a few times that night.

_'Gooood luck, Hoagiiie!_' Wally taunted, giving him a michevious smirk and a wave.

'Shut up, Wally.'

And with that, his two friends were gone.

And he was alone.

He got into his old blue pickup truk, wondering vaguely if the car -not fancy or formal to say the least- would be okay to pick up the girl of his dreams in. But, he really didn't care anymore. He had made it this far; what was the worst thing that could happen? Then, his head went wild with possibilities.

_She could stand you up._

_You could get food stuck in your teeth._

_The car could break down._

_A temporary rift in time and space could produce a reaction powerful enough to remove her or you from the face of the universe completely._

_..._

They went on to get even more far-fetched. Somewhere deep down he knew that Abby wouldn't stand him up, or do anything to hurt him. Even so, he was still worried. Worried because he expected something to ruin it, somehow. Like something was meant to ruin it, just because he wasn't _meant _to go out with Abby.

But he shoved all those theories to the back of his mind. He wasn't going to let _anything _ruin tonight.

Exept maybe the time-space-universe thing. He really didn't know if he could do anything to stop that from happening.

He drove over to Abby's house, with the stereo turned up loud most of the way. It helped keep his nerves at bay.

But he turned down the tunes once he turned into her street. He thought he would come off too... too much like _Ace_ if he rocked up to her door with the music pumping.

Before he knew it, he was there, and once again, his heart was in his throat. He swallowed, hard, before forcing himself out of the car and walking shakily up to the front door.

He raised his fist, which was trembling nervously, he kocked three times.

Mr. Lincoln answered the door.

'Well, if it isn't Hoagie Gilligan, with the goggles, and the planes and the- aw, you know what I'm talkin' about! I haven't seen you since you and Abby were only ten years old!'

He laughed awkwardly.

'Hehe, hi, Mr. Lincoln. Is Abby ready to go yet?'

'I think so. Let me just go check on her.'

He waited about ten seconds, before he heard the man's voice;

'Abigail! Your friend Hoagie is here!'

There was the ruffling of bedsheets, as if someone had been sitting down, and had just stood up quickly.

'Uh- I'm coming!' He heard Abby's voice.

I was just sitting on my bed, feeling pretty much fine, when dad called up to me that Hoagie had arrived. I had a freak out moment, and stood up like my bed was suddenly on fire. Kuki smirked, tried to hide her expression, but I could still tell. She whispered something about 'letting herself out,' once I'd gone. She then wished me luck, shoved a red purse and my hat into my hands and almost pushed me out my bedroom door.

I walked down the stairs, feeling my legs go a little wobbly. _Was this really happening?_

_Was this really happening?_

I couldn't even convince myself of it.

I was standing there, feeling awkward, but so, so excited too.

_Hang on..._

Oh my god.

There she was.

I couldn't believe my eyes. I thought maybe my mouth was hanging open, but somehow I just couldn't bring myself to close it. I couldn't move at all. She was just... amazing. The dress, the face, the smile, but most of all, just everything about her seemed so very perfect. Flawless. I tried to shift my legs, my arms, anything. But I got nothing. Tried to speak. Nothing came out.

Abby looked to him, smiling a small smile. Hoagie couldn't read her expression. Mr. Lincoln, apparently sensing that he should leave them be, left the room.

'H-how do I look?'

...Silence.

Finally, he forced the words out.

'A-uhm-ah... wow.'

He did, however, see her blushing under her dark skin.

'Uhm, are you.. ready to go?' she asked.

Hoagie nodded. He thought. He didn't know. But apparently he had, because Abby began to walk to the door, and Hoagie followed.

The car trip to the cafe they were having dinner at beore the movie started out a little awkward. Hoagie was too afraid of making a fool of himself to speak. He feared that if he opened his mouth, he'd end up saying something embaressing. Abby was just sitting there, wondering how the night was going to go. Don't get me wrong, they were both thrilled to be there, but as long as they had their minds on trying to be perfect, they were just too cautious to be casual.

But then, Hoagie turned on the radio, hoping to break the tension.

A song came on, playing a song that both the pair knew.

_So there we were back home from somewhere inside my head,_

_While bravely I fought off the monsters beneath her bed._

Abby and Hoagie knew it well. They had listened to this song when they had gone to the beach for a weekend, when they were twelve. It was one of their happiest memories. The song ment a lot to them.

_But when her smile came back,_

_and I didn't feel half as horrible,_

_she gave me a heart attack,_

_just because she looked so adorable._

_We both put our sunblock on,_

_laid on the beach and vowed that we'd live and we'd learn,_

_Well she got a tan and I got a sunburn._

The instant they heard the song, they looked up at each other, and in seconds they were both singing along, and the tension was gone with the wind. The wind that was streaming through Abby's hair from the open windows. The wind that ruffled Hoagie's shirt, tossed it around.

They were almost dissappointed when they arrived at the cafe. But still, they both got out of the car and made their way over to the door.

They grabbed a booth over in the corner, sitting down, both smiling happily. But then, Abby, who was facing the rest of the cafe, saw something that made her jaw drop.

'What, Abby?'

'Check that out!' She exclaimed, pointing in disbelief to another table in the middle of the place.

Hoagie turned around slowly, wondering what could be so surprising. Then, he saw it, and _his _jaw was hung slack as well.

Patton and Fanny were sitting at a table, near the middle of the resturant. _Patton _and _Fanny. _

...

...

_Patton_ and _Fanny!_

Suddenly, Abby and Hoagie burst out laughing, as hard as they had ever laughed before.

By the time they had laughed themselves out, they were crying with mirth, and their sides both hurt. Then, after a few seconds of silence, they began laughing again. It took five minutes for them to calm down enough to order.

'Oh my gosh, can you_ believe_ that?' Abby said, once the waiter had taken their requests.

'No way! I thought those two _hated _each other!' Hoagie replied, still smiling widely.

'So did I!'

'Well, I guess opposites attract.'

'Yeah.'

They got talking, just casually, laughing and joking, and soon they were both having a really good time. Their meals came; a chicken burger and chocolate milkshake for Abby, a burger with the lot and a root beer float for Hoagie.

'So, have you made any progress with Chemical Z2A?' Abby asked, taking a sip of her milkshake, which was piled high with chocolate sauce and whipped cream.

'Yeah, I have actually. I'm pretty sure I know basically how it works, and I think I'm on the way to finding out how to reverse the effect. Like an anti-venom for snakebites, y'know?'

'Yeah. That sounds cool! Complicated, but cool. Definitely your field.'

_Complicated but cool._ Was she reffering to him, or just his work? What did that mean?

'We think we have a lead as to where Dr. Colter might be hiding out.' She continued.

'Really? How'd you find that out?'

'We've tracked down someone we think could be his assistant.'

'And that would be...?'

'Guess. One word; Secretary.'

'Anna Worthington?' Hoagie said flatly.

'Yep.' Abby nodded.

'Go figure.'

It was a quarter past seven when they had finished dinner, and they were still laughing as the left the cafe to walk to the movie theatre.

In line, Hoagie noticed that he got a couple of stares from some faces they recognised from school.

_Shows them, _he thought to himself, smirking proudly. The three or four teens were staring at the pair, as if thinking; _that Gilligan kid actually got __Abby Lincoln__ to go out with him?_

Abby was also smiling as she noticed their disbelieving looks. _Let 'em stare. I'm happy here, Hoagie's happy here, to heck with everybody else._

They ordered their popcorn and drinks, and made their way into the cinema.

A kids movie.

It was still a good movie, and Abby and Hoagie enjoyed it as much as Numbuh 2 and Numbuh 5 would have, back when they were kids.

Laughing like they were crazy up the back of the cinema, they spent the whole two hours of the movie just enjoying every moment.

And by the end, Hoagie's arm was around Abby.

They walked out together, it was 9:45. Dark. A nice night, even if it was a bit cold.

Walking through the park, just walking, with Hoagie's arm still around Abby's shoulders, none of them could imagine the air around them ever being tense. It felt so natural, just like it had been before decommissioning. They were laughing about everything from school to old memories, and back to Fanny and Patton again.

'How _did _that happen?'

'I have _no _idea. _No _idea in _heck.' _They said, both suddenly stopping at the same time. They were in front of the playground. An at the exact same instant, they both had the exact same idea.

They eyed off the playground, thinking about how fun it would be to play on it, but thinking that it was crazy.

'You wanna go play on the-' Hoagie started, but was cut off.

'Yep,' Abby interjected quickly.

And then, they were on the playground, not even caring what they must have looked like; two sixteen year-olds swinging and sliding and climbing on the monkeybars and slides and jungle-gyms, and in all their dressy clothes as well.

But no-one could see them. They wouldn't have cared, even if it had been broad daylight.

After five minutes, Abby was up on top of the jungle-gym. Hoagie was standing atop the slide, ready to push himself down it again.

'Don't slip up there, Hoags!' Abby called to him, remembering his clumsy reputation.

'What are you talking about? I'm not gonna f- whoa!'

..._Thud._

_'_...ow.'

Abby was laughing harder than she had all night. Hoagie just scowled, but then his expression broke and he was laughing as well. He couldn't help it.

So he swung himself up onto the jungle-gym next to Abby, who was still laughing her head off. Hoagie was surprised that _she _hadn't fallen off the gym in all her mirth.

'And you said I could never make you laugh,' he said, grinning widely.

'No, you can't. At least not when you're trying!'

Hoagie had no response to that, and gradually, silence fell, and the darkness seemed to take over, leaving the two to enjoy the night's peacefulness once again. Abby smiled as she heard a deep, satisfied sigh from next to her. She could not for the life of her think of a reason why she had ever been nervous about this.

Hoagie turned to look at Abby, who had her eyes closed, taking in deep breaths of the crisp air. He was having trouble digesting the fact that this night, this perfect night, had _actually _just happened. And was still happening in front of his very eyes.

But when Abby opened her eyes to see Hoagie looking at her, looking at her in _that _way, both of them snapped back to reality in one eighth of an instant.

It was just like back in the trenches, back when they were twelve. It was coming, they knew, but it was spontanious at the same time. Slowly, they were getting closer, then closer, then finally, it happened.

They kissed, and their hearts leapt into overdrive.

The breath caught in their throats.

Dizzying emotions made their heads spin.

And the moment was about as perfect as they could ask for.

All those memories lost for so long, those years spent not even knowing what they had been, none of that mattered anymore. They didn't care that they had missed each other desperately for three years behind oblivious minds, it was all okay. Because now they knew. And now, it was the same.

When they finally broke apart, nobody said anything for a while. Abby just layed her head on Hoagie's shoulder, and they spent who-knows-how-long simply relishing every moment, looking out over the forests of trees, a small, calm smile on their faces.

Then, in a voice smaller than Abby knew she had, she said;

'Hoagie?'

'Yeah?'

'I love you.'

..

'I love you too, Abby.'

~(*)~

**A/N: I wanted to make that chapter perfect. Was it even close to that? I don't know. But if you read this, PLEASE review it! Annonymous reviews _is _on, so just give me any feedback you want to! As long as it's good. Nah, just kidding, tell me what you really thought.**

**WOOO! Gotta love the Hoagie/Abby-ness! I had to surpress so many fangirl squeals while writing that chapter, I think I may actually have a build-up of them in my throat somewhere.**

**Next chapter up next week, just like usual!**

**I GET A FOUR DAY WEEKEND! YAYAYAY!**

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	28. Ch 27, Stakeouts and Spiders

**A/N: Hey! It's me! This chapter is pretty interesting, I think. We get to see the team back on the field again! YAAY! **

**Just a quick note, I have school camp next week, so next week's chapter might have to be delayed. I'll try to get it up as soon as I can, but it may have to be put off until the _next _week, sorry! I really am sorry! And also, updating might get a little harder in the next few weeks, what with school ending soon, and my dance concert, which I have to be at rehearsals and photo shoots for... but I'll try! I see a lot of late nights in my future...**

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Chapter 27 – Stakeouts and Spiders

'_Really!?' _Kuki squealed, squirming in delight in the seat next to Abby, as her friend recounted the events of the night before. They were sitting on a park bench, halfway through the ice-creams they'd bought from the stand in the park.

'Yeah. It's official. We're _'us' _again,' Abby said, smiling widely. Last night was a dream come true for her.

'Ohmigosh, that is so _cute!' _Kuki said again, though Abby could detect a hint of sadness in her friend's tone.

'But...?' Abby began for her friend, trying to pry it out of her.

'Hm? Oh, it's nothing.'

'Oooh, I get it. You're wishing that _someone _would ask you out!'

'What? No! I just...' Kuki stumbled, her face turning red.

'Kuki,' Abby said, turning to look Kuki in the eye.

'Don't try to cover it. You want _Wally _to confess to you.'

Kuki's brow creased in confusion, obviously unsure about what Numbuh 5 had said.

'Confess? What is there to confess?'

That earned her a fit of laughter.

'That he likes you, girl!'

'He does not! ..Does he?'

'Well _duh! _How could you _not_ notice?He's been head-over-heels for you since the moment you two met!'

'Really?'

'I'm pretty sue you're the only one who doesn't see it.'

Kuki had nothing to say after that. She just sat there with a little smile on her face. Abby chuckled.

'C'mon Kuki, we'd better get to the treehouse,' she said.

Sector V was meeting at the treehouse in ten minutes. While Hoagie and Abby were out the previous night, Numbuhs 1, 3 and 4 had confirmed the whereabouts of Dr. Colter's hideout, and today, they were planning a stakeout.

Kuki got up after Abby, and followed her away from the park, towards Nigel's old house, and the treehouse.

~(*)~

Hoagie yawned. He'd been in the lab since 5:30 that morning. For the fourth day in a row. And he was even more tired since he had been awake long into he night before, trying to convince himself that what had just happened was _not _a dream.

He picked up another test tube of Chemical Z2A, this time it was one that he'd combined with Glycenol, to find out how it would react. The results of this experiment would have a major impact on the method and ingredients he would use in the antidote.

Chemistry wasn't Hoagie's best subject, but then, he _was _only six years old when he wired his first rocket engine. He had been mixing chemicals since he could first hold a test tube, and he had always been one of the top scientists in the KND.

He sat down, his head hurting a little, a combination of over-concentration and stress.

But my god was he happy.

He had Abby back.

He felt like the luckiest nerd in the history of the world. To have the girl he'd loved since he coul remember, to know that she felt the same way, he just couldn't help but smile every time he thought about it.

He sighed, getting up and heading towards the exit, the door that lead back into the rest of the treehouse. It was almost 1pm now, the time they were meant to meet.

Hoagie was, even through his tiredness, excited to be going on their first 'real mission' since they had been recommissioned. He was eager to get back out there, see how well he could remember how to use all the gagets and weapons he had used to handle on a daily basis.

Numbuh 1 was just arriving as Hoagie entered the breifing room.

'Hey, Numbuh 1,' he said, his voice betraying how tired he was.

'Hi, Numbuh 2. You're here early,' Nigel commented.

'Been here a lot longer than this, man,' Hoagie replied. But he didn't want to go any further into the subject, so he began to ask about the stakeout that was to take place today.

'When are we leaving?'

'In about half an hour, granted that everyone's here by then.'

Wally rocked up then, with the elevator '_ding'_ing in the background.

'Hey, guys,' he said, before giving Hoagie that same mischevious smirk as he had the night before;

'How'd the date go, _Hooogie?' _he teased, but Hoagie didn't care. There was nothing to tease about.

'Perfect,' he retorted, taking note of the slightly dissappointed look on Wally's face as he was put back into his place.

'Abby and I are back together.'

'Really? Good for you two!' Nigel commented, giving Hoagie a slap on the back.

Boys really aren't ones for girly screaming and hours of talking out every little detail.

Hoagie just smiled and nodded.

'So what weapons are we bringing?' Numbuh 4 continued, eager to get off the subject and avoid this turning into another 'girl-fiasco'. Basically, it was the time when Nigel, (formerly Hoagie) and himself would try to convince the other to ask out the girl they liked. It usually ended with an 'I will if you will' pact, but those never went anywhere. They may as well have been 'I'll do the chicken dance at the next school assembly if you do' pact. Wally didn't feel like that sort of an awkward situation right now, so he waited expectantly for Numbuh 1's answer.

'Well, we're definitely bringing a S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. each, a M.U.S.K.E.T. and maybe a G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A. as well, just to be safe.' Numbuh 1 counted off the items on his fingers, and as he did, it became obvious to the other two boys standing there that he'd thought about all this before he had come.

When Numbuh 3 and Numbuh 5 finally arrived, followed closely by Joey and the rest of the _other _Sector V, it was down to buisiness. The younger Sector V were to stay behind at the treehouse and relay any information they gathered back to Moonbase, and act as backup if any was needed, while the older Sector V made their way into the old abandoned warehouse that Dr. Colter had made his headquarters. They were meant to split up into three groups, and cover one third of the property per group. That way, they would be able to have eyes on the whole place at one time. Keeping in touch between groups would be easy, so long as they kept their earpieces in.

The plan should roll out without a hitch.

It was perfect.

In theory.

But then, this _was _Sector V they were talking about, so there was no garauntee that things would roll out without a hitch.

~(*)~

'Numbuh 1, I'm in position,' Numbuh 3 whispered through the mouthpiece of her walkie-talkie, on her stomach, in the airvent of Colter's hideout. There was a few seconds of quiet static.

'Roger that, Numbuh 3, good work,' came their leader's reply.

'Now make sure that no-one can hear you.'

Kuki fidgeted a bit, trying to get comfortable in the cold, cramped metal vent. She had a clear view through a grate in the ceiling, and she seemed to be above Dr. Colter's lab. She could see test tubes and beakers and complicated connections of tubes and boilers, a lot of which seemed unnecessary. I mean, why would he need this little drop of chemical to go through about ten bazillion miles of tubing, only to be dropped right back into its first container?

~(*)~

While Numbuh 3 was getting settled in the air vent, Numbuhs 1 and 2 were hiding out on the other side of their target's headquarters; behind the plaster wall in a large, open room filled with everything from vehicles to weapons and three whole racks of chemical Z2A.

'So how long exactly are we meant to be here?' Numbuh 2 asked, hoping the answer wouldn't be long.

'As long as it takes,' was Numbuh 1's simple reply.

'Great...' Hoagie replied sarcasticly, anticipating many long hours of being stuck behind a sheet of drywall.

~(*)~

'Numbuh 4, would you keep _still? _Do you _want _to get us spotted?' Numbuh 5 hissed to the boy, who was trying to find a decent position on his branch.

Yes, they were in a tree.

'But this thing is so _uncomfortable!' _he complained, shifting around again.

'Ah keep gettin' poked by these stupid branches!'

'Just _shush, _okay?'

...

'Foine...'

Abby turned back around and raised one hand to talk through her walkie-talkie, while the other outstretched arm kept a firm hold on the trunk of the tree, as she leaned away from it to get a better view.

'Numbuh 1, are you there? We're in position. Over.'

'Okay, Numbuh 5. Do you have a visual yet?' was the reply.

'Nope, not yet. I'll check in when we see him.'

'Alright. Now we're ready.'

And with that, Sector V all got a rush, a shiver up their spines;

_I can't believe we're all out on the field again!_

~(*)~

About ten minutes later, Numbuhs 4 and 5 sighted Dr. Colter's car; the sleek, black one.

'Numbuh 1! We have a visual, I repeat, we have a visual! Dr. Colter should be entering the building in about five minutes,' Wally whisper-yelled into the walkie-talkie, shrinking back into the shadows of the tree, to ensure that he couldn't be seen.

'Alright, we hear you loud and clear, Numbuh 4. I'll alert Numbuh 3.'

They both hung up the walkies. Wally and Abby watched intently as Dr. Colter got out of his car, went around to the back, and unloaded almost more lab equipment than he coul manage, before making his way over to the door of the warehouse.

~(*)~

Kuki was almost falling asleep in her stakeout position. It was boring, being the only team member to be stuck on her own in this air vent, where she could hardly move, mind you. She was in mid-yawn when she received the transmission from Numbuh 1.

'Numbuh 3? Colter should be entering the lab soon. Stay on alert, and make sure you are _completely _silent.'

'Why did you have to tell me that again? Don't you trust me to be quiet?' Kuki said back indignantly, trying to think of any time she'd ever been reckless on a mission.

None came to mind.

'No, it's just... uh, never mind. Just be on alert. Over and out.'

So Numbuh 3 craned her neck to get the best perspective from her little grate, and sure enough, exactly four minutes later, the door was flung open.

Kuki watched Colter unpacking his little dohickeys and whatchamacallits for almost twenty minutes, and needless to say she became bored again. Every now and then Numbuh 1 would call her again, jolting her awake and sending her heartbeat into overdrive for a few seconds.

But after lying there and almost falling asleep almost ten times, and being woken up ten times, she was working on the eleventh...

When she felt a small tingling sensation up the back of her neck.

At first she thought it was just her imagination, or maybe the beginnings of pins and needles. But then, the feeling started to move, and _that _was when she_ really _started to freak.

Her eyes widened, and in a split second she realised what was causing the little tingling that was now making its way down her shoulder.

She panicked.

And she forgot all about Numbuh 1's warning.

She began rolling, thrashing about in the airvent, trying to shake the spider off of her, screaming a high-pitched scream all the while. Her hair was in her eyes, she couldn't see what she was doing. But when a big, brown shape fell in front of her, she could see enough to know what to do next.

A moment of silence, of stillness, and then...

_'DIE SPIDER! DIE, DIE, DIE!' _She yelled at the top of her lungs, using her walkie-talkie to attempt crushing the little bug in front of her.

But even as she was in the middle of 'taking care' of the little arachnid, she could just make out Numbuh 1's worried voice, from the speaker of the very thing she was using as a weapon.

'_Numbuh 3! What are you __doing?__ You are going to be spotted, forget the stupid spider!'_

After about thirty seconds of

a) Igoring Numbuh 1 (and Numbuh 2, Numbuh 4 and Numbuh 5) telling her to shut up

b) screaming and kicking and slamming that walkie-talkie down on the poor little spider, and

c) her teammates thinking that any minute, Colter was going to figure out where all that screaming was coming from,

Kuki had finally succeeded in defeating her opponent (who was now little more than a sticky smear of stuff with a leg sticking out of it). But as she calmed down, and took a look out of the grating, she screamed once more as she saw none other than Dr. Colter's furious face glaring back at her through the slitted vent, only inches away from hers.

Kuki had to think quick. She pulled off the grate and dropped it into the room, which was enough to dislodge Colter from where he stood precariously on a stack of chairs. He crashed to the floor, and Numbuh 3 dropped herself through the gap and landed in the room herself, then proceeding to call Numbuh 1 on her amazingly still functioning walkie-talkie.

'Numbuh 1? I.. uh, I've been spotted. Could you maybe-'

'We'll be right down there, Kuki,' Numbuh 1 said, after an exasperated sigh.

Colter seemed to be taking a while to get back on his feet, and by the time he seemed ready to fight, the others had arrived.

They all just stood there for a second, not sure of what to do, while their enemy looked them all over with a confused yet thoughtful expression on his face.

Then, after a while, it dawned on him, and his eyes narrowed in an instant.

'_You,' _he spat across the room to the five people who had taken him down four years ago.

'Yep, we're back. Did ya miss us?' Abby chided, smirking at the evil scientist before her.

'But how? You shouldn't remember any of this..' Dr. Colter, however confused, was not in the mood to back down from a fight.

And so, they fought.

S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R.s were flung, ray guns fired, punches thrown, until everyone there was beginning to get tired.

Colter could have sprayed them with Chemical Z2A, easily. There was heaps of the stuff in this room. But it wouldn't have any effect on Sector V now. They were already teens, so no matter how much they were sprayed or injected with the stuff, nothing would happen. So, he settled for an old-school fight.

They had been at it for a while now, and they had gotten into a position that left Dr. Colter in the middle of a circle made by the members of Sector V.

'No escape now, ya cruddy _adult,' _Wally sneered.

He got only a growl in return.

There was a few seconds of silence.

Then, Colter tried to make a break for it, only to be caught head-on with a face full of timber, courtesy of Numbuh 5's S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R.

He fell to the floor, knocked out cold, while Sector V celebrated their first field victory in almost four years.

They called the treehouse, where Joey and the _other _Sector V were waiting, and within ten minutes they had a S.C.A.M.P.E.R. out there, waiting to take the villain to the Arctic prison.

And after he had been dropped off, the team decided that they had earned themselves some celebratory milkshakes.

'That was the most fun I think I've had in a _long _time,' Numbuh 2 commented, slurping on his chocolate thickshake.

'Definitely. I can't believe we still remembered how to do all that,' Numbuh 1 agreed.

'It feels so good ta actually beat someone up without knowin' you're gonna get in trouble afterwards,' Wally added. Everyone laughed at that, while the aussie gave them the 'What's so funny?' face.

'Yeah, that _was _fun,' Numbuh 5 started.

'But Kuki? Next time you come across a spider, can you just bug spray it instead of yellin' like ya did? It just makes things a bit easier if our targets _can't _hear your murderous screams in the background.'

Kuki tried to cross her arms in annoyance, but couldn't keep a straight face as she remembered how frantic she had been. In the end, she just burst out laughing along with everyone else.

'So, now that Colter's taken care of, I guess we just have to find out how to get all the turned operatives back,' Numbuh 2 said, after they'd all laughed themselves out. He thought about the progress he was making in the lab. At the rate he was going, he could have a cure for chemical Z2A's effect by the end of the month.

'Yep. But until then, at least we know that we still got it.'

'Uh-hu.'

Numbuh 1 then raised his milkshake glass up in the middle of the table they were all sitting around, to make a toast.

'To victory,' he said, smiling happily. Everyone else, raising their drinks as well, repeated in chorus;

_'To victory!'_

~(*)~

**A/N: And there you go! How'd you like it?**

**Wally: So that's it? No more Dr. Colter? Wasn't that a bit easy?**

**Me: Mm-hmm. Maybe a little _too _easy **winkwinknudgenudge****

**Abby: What are you sayin', girl?**

**Nigel: I think what she's trying to say is that Dr. Colter isn't quite **hand slapped across his mouth****

**Hoagie: I'm not so sure that Abbey ( that's me) wants everyone to know that just yet. We're gonna have to cut that short, everyone. Just to make sure that these guys don't tell you anything they're not _meant _to...**

**As always, R&R!**

**-Numbuh 25 Over and Out**


	29. Ch 28, Kris Kringle

**A/N: Hey! I'm back with another chapter! Sorry again about the skipped week, there was camp, and late nights and concerts and netball and virtually no time for writing at all! But good news! School ends in two weeks, so after that, I can focus all of my brain on writing awesome chapters for you guys! YAAAAY! Now you can read.**

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Chapter 28 – Kris Kringle

'Wallaby? Have you locked the back door yet?' Mrs. Beatles called to her son, who was in his room, staring at his suitcases happily, with his hands proudly on his hips.

'Yeah, Ah did before, mum!' He called back, bending down now to pick up the first of the assorted bags.

Two weeks had passed since the stakeout at Dr. Colter's; a lot in Wally's real world as well as his Kids Next Door world. Almost every day after school, Joey's sector and his own would meet up, whether it be to discuss plans, strategies and possibilities for the future, or to suss out a new lead or a possilbly suspicious teen they had spotted at school (can you guess who reported most of these? He's tall, a teensy bit uptight, an is severely lacking in the hair department).

School had ended, everyone saying their goodbyes and merry christmases for the winter break. Hoagie had created a still-in-the-test-stage serum that was supposed to reverse the turning process, but it was still unstable, and he still had many tests to run on it before he could be sure it was safe to use.

The kris-kringle had also been done as well. Nobody had had much time to think about what they were going to get for each other, but then, they had known each other for so long, that they really didn't _need _that much time.

They had met up at the treehouse, mid-morning, when the air still had its biting early chill, and their breath fogged in front of them.

They were sitting, in a circle, in the middle of the TV room, with the pile of wrapped up presents in the middle.

Wally had never been one to get overly excited, but even he had to admit that he was getting excited now.

It was christmas, and he was with the best friends that, until under a fortnight ago, he didn't even know he had.

And now, with the happiest time of the year comoing around soon, just around the corner, and only two days until he left for Australia, it was hard not to feel the anticipation.

Wally smirked to himself as Kuki tried to reach sneakily forward and grab her own tagged gift, only to have her hand slapped back by Abby. Kuki was always enthusiastic and excited.

Wally had been thinking about Kuki a lot, especially since his recommissioning. Thinking about how even though everything had changed, even though all the other details of his life had been flipped on their heads, his feelings for Kuki hadn't changed at all. He still loved the same things; her bubbly personality, her glittering smile, the way her hair bounced and swirled around her shoulders when she walked, how she was always ready for anything, as well as the firey side that came out whenever someone upset her.

He had had many thoughts about telling her everything, but the dream seemed too far off to even be a possibility. He had imagined the moment so many times he almost felt that it had acctually happened. He pictured himself saying it, confessing everything, he imagined the awkward silence, and felt the sharp pang in his chest as she tried to say nicely the things that could not ever be said nicely.

And _that _was why he chickened out every time he attempted admitting to his feelings.

Nigel picked up the first gift, a small rectangular one wrapped in red and gold paper. Nigel read out the tag;

'To Hoagie, from your Secret Santa.'

And the gift was passed to Hoagie, who tore off the paper in two seconds flat.

Kuki watched on with the rest of the group, trying to keep a straight face so Hoagie wouldn't know that she was his secret santa.

The red paper lay ripped and discarded, in bits all around the circle, while Hoagie sat holding a limited edition Yipper set, one that Hoagie knew was very hard to find.

'Awesome! This is so cool, I thought these came off the shelves ages ago!' He looked around the room.

'Thanks a lot, uhm, whoever you are..' He said, to the room.

Kuki was about to call out 'No problem!' but had to bite her tongue quickly to avoid doing so. Instead she just smiled quietly.

Abby's present was picked up next. And unlike the last one, it wasn't that hard to guess who had bought this present, even without opening it, as the tag read;

'Too Abby, Merri Krismass, from Cris Cringl.'

But Abby played along for the sake of it, and took the gift (which was wrapped a little untidily) as it was handed to her.

A gem the size of a lightbulb gleamed among the shreds of wrapping paper.

But it wasn't just any gem. The shining crystal was an emerald made out of the finest lime flavoured rock candy.

'Aw cool! Where did you find this?' She beamed to no-one in particular, holding up the candy gem to examine it in the light. Wally sat opposite her, smiling to himself, fully unaware that Abby, as well as everyone else, knew perfectly well that he was the secret santa in this situation.

Nigel opened his present next, a voucher for the online KND store, (the organisation had modernised a lot since Sector V had left) which Nigel could use to download 2X4 technology apps and gadgets to his phone.

There was also a book there, one that Nigel had loved as a kid.

'Aw, great! This is perfect! Thanks a lot!' He said, thinking of all the things he could buy with the money on the card.

Abby smirked, her hopes that her present would be well accepted confirmed.

There were only two presents left in the circle, one of which Kuki eagerly snapped up as she recognised her name on the tag.

Within three seconds, she was holding a DVD compilation of all her favourite rainbow monkey movies TV show episodes and holiday specials. She squealed, causing the others to wince and cover their ears.

'Eeeep! I haven't seen these movies in _ages! _Oh my gosh, thank you thank you thank you!' She gave everyone a hug, because she wasn't sure which of them she was meant to be thanking, but Hoagie did feel very thanked when she got to him, and hugged him so tight that he, as well as the others, were left gasping for air.

And then there was only one more. The gift stood alone, in the middle of a pile of torn wrapping and packaging in shreds, clad in blue and silver paper. Wally looked from side to side, as if making sure that it was his present. When he was sure, he leant over and picked up the oddly-shaped parcel. Pulling off the paper, two little objects slipped out; one he loved, another, he...

'RAINBOW MONKEYS?' He yelled, staring in disbelief at the cover of the videogame; "Rainbow Monkey Picnic 4: Share Time," which was sitting in his hands. There was a few seconds of silence, before Nigel, Hoagie and Abby began to laugh their heads off, while Kuki was left to say;

'What? That's a good game!'

The laughter died down (after a considerable amount of time) and Wally's glare made it all the harder to calm themselves down.

'Okay, who's tha wise guy who gave me tha cruddy rainbow dorky game?' He said, shooting a poisonous look around the circle.

'Maybe you should open the cover, Wally,' Abby said, pretty sure she'd worked out the trick Wally's secret santa had played on him.

Wally's eyebrows narrowed, and he looked down again, before opening the cover of the game, and looking down at a game disk that was _not _Rainbow Monkey Picnic 4.

'Agh, awesome! Tha new Zombie Warrior Destroyer game! Cool!' He cried, his anger melting away. He then looked down at the other object that had slipped out of the present when he'd opened it.

It was small, in the shape of a squashed oval, and had about a million little buttons and knobs attatched to the side and front.

'What does this do?' he asked to nobody, cautiously pushing one of the many buttons. Instantly, a soda bottle opener sprung out of one of the ends of the contraption, startling Wally a bit, but putting a smile on his face.

'Sweet! This thing has gotta have like eleventy-hundred gadgets on it!' He said, now proceeding to push every button, pull every trigger and twist every knob he could get his hands on.

'That oughta keep him busy for a while,' Numbuh 2 smirked.

Numbuh 1 sat next to him, also smiling. He knew Wally was going to like it, and the look on his face when he unwrapped that little Rainbow Monkey prank he'd pulled...

Priceless.

After that, Sector V had gone up to the point. Yes, they went to the point. Sure, it was full of teens but it was almost christmas, and everyone seemed to be in a pretty good mood. The joint had been decorated with tinsel, baubles, fake snow, and bells.

They had ordered drinks and food, and spent the day laughing at each other as they fell over on the rink; again and again and again.

'Wally! Come on love, it's time to leave!' Wally's mother's voice jerked him out of his little recount, and he looked down again at all his bags, beginning to haul the first few out of his room.

'Alright, mum! I'll be -ugh, stupid bag- right down!'

Ten minutes later, the bags were in the car (it was amazing that they could all fit in there) and the Beatles family set off to the airport, and Wally couldn't help the smile on his face, as he sat looking out the car window, with his headphones in.

_'Australia, here Ah come,'_ he thought to himself, smiling wider as he saw Joey sitting next to him, jiggling up and down in his seat and looking _very _excited.

~(*)~

Wally had left from the Point to go straight home at about 1:30pm.

It was now 2:05pm.

Nigel was having a good time, at the roller rink. He wasn't a great skater, prefered to stick to calmly doing laps around the floor than racing around like Wally did. He was with his friends, and it was nearly christmas. What else could he want?

Then, _she _showed up.

'Hiii, Nigie!' She called, and instantly Nigel's good feeling faded. He hesitated, considering pretending he hadn't seen her, but it was too late. He wouldn't be able to get out of it now.

'Uh, hi Lizzie. How are you?'

'Oh, I'm fine,' she said, doing the whole 'flirty-eyelashes thing. 'I didn't think I'd run into _you _here.'

'Uh, yeah, well... here I am.'

Since Lizzie still thought that Nigel shouldn't remember anything about them ever being together, ever breaking up, she obviously had the nerve to try and 'get him back.'

That made Nigel just a _teeensy_ bit angry.

'So, can I- uhm, help you, Lizzie?' he asked, wondering just where this girl would try to take the conversation.

'Oh no, I'm just here to skate. Do you wanna, y'know, skate _with _me?' she posed, hitting full on desperate-flirt-try-anything-you-can mode.

'Ehe, thanks, Lizzie, but no thanks. I'm actually, I'm- I'm here with someone!' He fibbed, instantly regreting it.

Lizzie's smile hardened.

'Oh really?' She said, somewhat harshly. 'Who?'

Nigel scanned the room, wondering just how on earth he was going to get out of this now.

That's when he spotted her.

Rachel was at the counter of the snack bar, ordering something. Nigel thought she must have just arrived, as he hadn't seen her until now.

'Rachel! Uhh, I'm here with Rachel,' he said, hoping that Lizzie'd buy it. The little menace in glasses raised an eyebrow, following Nigel's pointed finger to look at Rachel, who Nigel couldn't help but think looked a lot better than the girl in front of him, who was wearing a try-hard pink cropped top and tight jeans, as opposed to Rachel, who was in simple khaki shorts and an orange tee.

'Oh are you?' Lizzie said.

'Yeah. She just went to, uhm, get us some drinks.' Nigel hoped his lies were believable. Lizzie looked him up and down, then back at Rachel, then him, then her, then finally, back to him.

'Alright. But you better tell Rachel to watch out...'

Then, with a very fake, forced wink, Lizzie skated off, mumbling something like; _'I knew it! I always knew that blondie had a thing for my Nigie...'_ and Nigel breathed a heavy sigh of relief, before looking to Rachel. She was skating towards a table, holding a milkshake.

He considered saying telling her what had just happened, but instantly rejected the idea. How crazy would he sound then? But, after much, _much _debating with himself, he decided he could at least go over and say hi. So, he shakily propelled himself over to the booth in which she was sitting, tapping her fingers on the table along to the music.

'H-hi, Rachel,' he said, sitting down on the edge of the booth.

'Oh, hey, Nigel. What's up?' She replied, smiling at him in a friendly way, even though Nigel could tell she was wondering why he was there.

'Oh, not much. Just... skating..'

'Yeah... me too.' She said.

It was awkward.

'I saw Lizzie talking to you before,' Rachel added afterwards, looking down at her hands and fiddling with a little bracelet she was wearing.

'Oh. Oh! Oh no, she wasn't- I mean, we aren't... I don't like her, I think she just likes me,' he managed to finally get out.

'Really?

'Oh yeah. She's really not.. uhm, my type.'

'Ha, yeah. I didn't think you'd go for little miss wannabe.' Rachel's comment surprised Nigel a little. For one, she seemed to be acting apprehensive towards Lizzie for talking to him, although he couldn't think why, and two, she was taking a strange amount of interest in this. The two of them weren't even that close.

'Oh yeah. I could see the make-up on her face she was standing so close!' Nigel joked back, sliding a little further into the booth and starting to feel a little more comfortable.

Meanwhile, in the background, a certain _chubby, very _annoying figure stood seething, as she saw Nigel and Rachel sitting together. She had thought Nigel was lying about being here with her, but apparently it was actually happening.

'_Stupid blondie...' _

~(*)~

'Hey Abby, did you hear about the fairy who ate a chrismas decoration?'

'Ugh, no, Hoagie, I did not.'

'She got tinselitis! Get it? _tinselitis? _Bahahaha!' Abby rolled her eyes at the boy, before giving him a well-deserved hat smack.

'Ow! Aw, come on, that one was funny!'

'Nu-uh, it wasn't!'

The pair of them were sitting on the top deck of the treehouse, at 5:30pm. And Hoagie had been telling corny christmas jokes since they had gotten back from the point, half an hour ago.

They were just sitting there, legs dangling over the edge of the deck, leaning forward in the gaps of the railing, looking out at the sunset. And every now and then Hoagie would ruin the moment with another stupid joke.

The truth was, though, Hoagie had been stalling a little. He had another present for Abby, and he was trying to find the exact right moment to give it to her. But every time he got close to doing it, he'd chicken out and tell another joke instead.

But now, he thought, I'm actually going to do it. He took in a deep breath through his teeth, and did it.

'Uhm, Abby?' He said, looking across at her.

'No, Hoagie, I don't know why the reindeer crossed the Arctic.'

'No, it's not that. It's... uh, it's... here,' He stumbled, pushing the little gift box across the wooden deck to her. She picked up the little box, creased her brow, wondering what it was, before picking up the envelope attatched to it and tearing it open. Inside was a christmas card.

It had a picture on the front of a christmas tree out in the snow, with a large snowflake on the top right, and written across the bottom;

'_I must be a snowflake, because I've fallen for you...'_

Abby smiled despite herself. She couldn't resist the sweetness, however corny it was. She opened it, and read the message that Hoagie had written;

_The winter snow may make me freeze,_

_But you're always the only one that I see._

_And there's nowhere else that I'd rather be,_

_Than right next to you on Christmas Eve._

_Merry Christmas Abby,_

_Love, Hoagie_

She smiled, her eyes glazing over a little.

'Thank-you Hoagie,' she said quietly. She then picked up the little gift box that lay in her lap, opening it with care.

A little gold necklace gleamed back at her.

A golden chain, with a charm on the end. It was obviously custom made, since it had a '2' and a '5' on it, enclosed in a little heart.

Hoagie picked it up carefully out of the box, and gently, he undid the clasp and fastened it around Abby's neck.

Now, Abby actually did start to cry, leaning into Hoagie and putting her arms around his neck.

'Thank you,' she breathed again.

But what Hoagie didn't know, was at that moment, Abby made a vow to herself to get Hoagie a gift that would match up to this one before christmas, and she would do anything to find it.

**A/N: I really have nothing to say right now, except review and all, but that's a given.**

**...**

**...**

**...**

**Goodbye.**

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	30. Ch 29, Flying High

**Disclaimer: I ain't gonna waste time with witty remarks. I don't own KND.**

**A/N: Here I am! I'm cutting the 'weekend' deadline a little close though...**

**I feel like that person who runs into class at the last minute yelling 'I'M NOT LATE, I'M NOT LATE!'**

**Okay guys, I have good news and bad news.**

**Good news: School ends after this week, so I'll have eight straight weeks of writing! (On the downside, I might finish this fic. Depressing... Oh well, that's where sequel fics come in!**

**Bad news: My ballet concert is this weekend. I may be able to squeeze writing time in this week, but my weekend is booked. So it's either early or late with the next chapter.**

**READ I SAY, READ!**

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Chapter 29- Flying High

'Hey Wally?'

'Yeah Joe?'

'Can we go to the beach as soon as we get to Australia?'

'Haha, sure we can.'

Joey and Wally were standing amidst a huge crowd of people at the airport. All of them looked in a rush, eagar to get somewhere, whether for leisure or for work.

'Come on, boys! We don't wanna miss the check-in time, do we?' The boys' father called to them, causing them to move themselves out of the airport's entryway, and straight into the thick of the crowd.

It was 4:30.

In the morning.

Wally had been up since half-past two, and he had to admit, he'd been groggy and cranky when his mother had opened his bedroom door...

_'Wally?' His mother had whispered, pulling the door open a crack. Wally, awakened, and deeply annoyed, by the sliver of bright light that was projected through the gap. He groaned loudly._

_'Aw, Come on, Wally. We've gotta go to tha airport!'_

_And as he came to his senses and realised what today was, his eyes flew open and his tiredness evaporated._

_He sat bolt upright in his bed, so quick he almost made himself dizzy_

_'Ah'm awake!' he blurted, to no-one in particular._

...and since then he hadn't been worried about waking at obsenely early hours in freezing cold December weather.

In just fifteen hours he'd be in Sydney, Australia, enjoying the energizing December christmas heat.

Through the hustle and bustle the Beatles family pushed, dragging suitcases and carrying bags, in search of the check-in desk.

Eventually, they found it, after much arguing over directions and staring in confusion at all the numbers and letters and flight times on the electric boards.

It was about 5:15 when they got to the terminal they were to depart from, and they had about forty-five minutes until the flight left.

Wally sat in a not-so-comfortable seat, surrounded by other people, who were all going to the same place he was.

And the boredom set in again.

'Dad?'

'Yeah, Wally?'

'Can Ah have some money to get somethin' from the duty free shop?'

'Uhh..'

'_Pleeeeease?'_

_'_Alright then.'

So Wally and Joey left the _boring _terminal, where there was nothing but _boring _going on, and entered the duty-free, where there were lollies and monster truck magazines (of course, Wally only liked them for the pictures. Words took too much concentration).

Joey went to look at some of the activity sets, while Wally inspected the candy racks for the fruit jellies he loved.

He needed something to stop his ears from blocking up on the flight.

He and Joey ended up next to each other again, checking out headphones. Y'know, the expensive type, with the noise cancelling and stuff.

'Whot do ya think is goin' on back home?' Joey asked his brother.

'No idea, Joe. Ah really don't know.'

'Think they've made any progress on tha antidote?'

'Dunno. Ah hope so.'

Just then, the PA system pricked up, and Wally and Joey stopped to listen.

'_Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. This is a boarding call for Flight eleventy-thirty-teen to Sydney, Australia. That's flight eleventy-thirty-teen to Sydney, Australia, leaving in ten minutes. Thank you!'_

The two boys looked at each other, sharing the same '_Crud, that's us!' _look, before running to the counter to buy the packet of lollies and get the heck outta there.

But, as it turns out, they _were _making progress back home...

~(*)~

'Oh, for the love of- it's five forty-five in the _morning! _What the heck do you want, Hoagie?' Nigel hissed into his cell phone, eyes still half shut. He had just received a call from Numbuh 2. Before six am.

On a holiday.

'Nigel! I did it! I finished the antidote!' Hoagie yelled into the phone. Upon hearing this, Nigel immediately perked up.

'What?'

'The antidote is finished! I just perfected it just then!'

'Are you sure it's gonna work?'

'Absotively-poselutely!' Hoagie replied, his proud smile so wide that Nigel could hear it in his voice.

Numbuh 1 gave a deep sigh, not wanting to leave his bed.

With a slight hesitation, he said;

'Okay, I'll be right over. Call the others, too. Meet at the treehouse?'

'In ten minutes,' Hoagie confirmed.

'Alright.'

Nigel hung up his cell, then flopped down on his bed, trying to convince himself to get up.

Eventually, he did pull himself up, but it took almost five whole minutes until he managed to stand up.

~(*)~

'But Kuki, you gotta come! This is a whole team affair!'

'I don't care! I'm tired. I don't wanna get up!'

Kuki yawned into the phone, half-asleep and half wanting to kill Hoagie for waking her up.

'Look, Kuki. I know you're tired, I am too. But I just finished the antidote and I _really _need the team down here so we can test this thing!'

...

'Oh-_kay.'_

'Thanks! Treehouse in ten minutes?'

'Yeah, yeah, I'll be there.'

Kuki pushed herself out of bed and over to her closet to throw on a pair of leggings, a large, furry green sweater, a beanie, and a pair of green boots with fuzzy balls hanging off them.

~(*)~

Abby, however, did not need to be woken up. She was already at the treehouse with Hoagie.

'You're positive this'll work?' She asked, hopping off the bench she had been sitting on to walk over to where he was standing.

'Yup,' was Hoagie's simple reply.

'How will we know?' Abby asked.

'We're gonna test it on someone.'

'What? Who?'

'Someone who's already turned.'

'Alriiight...'

The two of them left the lab, walking out into the living area and flopping down on the couch.

'When are the others getting' here?' Numbuh 5 asked, giving a yawn.

'Bout ten minutes. If they can be bothered getting up.'

'How d'you think Wally's going?'

'Pretty good, I'd say. Probably on the plane by now.'

Hoagie picked up the TV remote, and turned it on, hoping for some morning cartoons.

~(*)~

'Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Express Airlines. We hope your flight is enjoyable, and our flight attendants are here to ensure that your flight is as pleasant as possible. The weather outside is slightly overcast but still suitable flying condition. Please turn your attention to the screens on the back of your seats for the safetly breifing.'

The air hostess on Wally's screen may as well have been tap dancing. Wally wasn't paying any attention to her. He figured out how to buckle his seatbelt, and was looking absent mindedly out the window, at the tarmac where planes were landing, taking off, and being guided by men in fluro vests.

It was about 6:25 by now, and the sun was starting to rise. The orange rays reached out over the horizon, and Wally smiled. Fourteen hour flight, an mp3 player with a fifteen hour battery life, and before he knew it he'd be there.

_'We ask that you please keep your seatbacks and tray tables in the upright and locked position for both take-off and landing. Breakfast will be served one hour after take-off, if you'd like to order a meal you can order from the Express menu, which can be found in your seat pocket...'_

How long had it been since he'd seen his family? They'd talked every once in a while, on the video phone or via e-mail or otherwise, but it just wasn't the same.

Who was there, hm...

Sammy and Kylie, they were about his age...

The little ones, Danny, Junior and the twins, Vinnie and Mellie...

Jack, Sharon and Gabbie, a little younger than him, but older than Joey...

And the oldest one, Katie.

And, of course, the Aunties and Uncles:

Kel and Grant, Jodie and Johnathon, Dianne and Mick.

_'Currently the time is 12:30am in Sydney, Australia, and we are estimating our arrival time as approximately fourteen hours, fifteen minutes from now. This will be about 2:40pm in Australia, but this time could change as the flight progresses.'_

Wally wondered if he could borrow one of his cousins' skimboards. He may prefer being buried in the sand to swimming or surfing, but skimboarding was pretty high up there with being completely submerged in sand.

'_Thank-you for listening, ladies and gentlemen. We hope you enjoy the flight, and your stay in Australia, whether it be for buisiness or for leisure. We are about to begin our takeoff proceedures, so we request that you turn off all electrical items until further notice. Thank-you!'_

Christmas day was sure to be a blast, with the whole huge family back together for the first time in almost twelve years.

Jostled from his thoughts, Wally felt the engines stirring underneath him.

The flight was about to leave.

~(*)~

Meanwhile, four out of the five Sector V members were at the treehouse, and four members of the younger Sector V were on their way, along with, of course, Numbuh 263.

Hoagie stood in the middle of the room, proudly holding his test tube up for everyone to see. It was a bluish-purple liquid, and it reflected the sun's light, almost seeming to glow slightly.

'So now that it's done, are we gonna test it straight away?' Kuki asked, sitting on the back of the couch.

'Yeah. We just have to decide who we're testing it on.' Hoagie replied, placing the tube back on the rack. Nigel frowned in concern.

'What if it doesn't work? What'll happen to the test subject then?' he questioned.

'Well, I haven't put any dangerous chemicals in or anything. At the very worst, if it doesn't reverse the effect of the turning, our subject will get a pretty mild stomach ache.' Numbuh 2 explained, taking a seat himself. He yawned, which set off a domino effect that passed through everyone in the room. They were all tired, they were all cold, but they were all fully alert now.

'Alright then.' Nigel nodded.

The four of them went back to watching TV for another ten minutes or so, before the rest of the operatives they were waiting on arrived.

The situation was explained to the younger ones, and the question posed;

'_Who do we test it on?'_

At first, no-one stepped in with any solutions. But then...

Robert had been standing in the corner of the room, watching on quietly for most of the time he had been there. He knew who he wanted to have back first, but something kept him from saying anything.

He wanted Jamie back.

And apparently Numbuh 505 could sense this.

She looked back at him, tilted her head to the side slightly as if trying to figure something out, and then called;

'I think we should bring back Numbuh 8,860!'

Everyone's head swivelled to face her.

The idea was well received.

'Yeah! We should bring Jamie back!' Numbuh 303 agreed.

'Good idea,' said Numbuh 121.

'We haven't seen Jamie since the middle of October!' Numbuh 202 added.

So it was decided.

Jamie Clearway, Numbuh 8,860, was to be the first subject of the antidote Numbuh 2 had nicknamed '_T.H.A.T.T.'_

_The _

_Hopeful_

_Antidote_

_To_

_Turning_

So, the two teams (and their soopreme leader) set off to the landing bay, to the S.C.A.M.P.E.R., and set off in the direction of Jamie's house.

~(*)~

'Good morning, sir. Would you like to order some breakfast?' The attandent asked Wally in a pleasant tone, stopping her cart next to his aisle.

'Uh, yeah, thanks. Can Ah have the... uhm, the bacon and eggs with pineapple juice, please?'

'Certainly. Anything else with that?'

'Joey, do you want anything?'

'Can I have bacon and eggs too?' Joey perked up. He had been napping for a while, and had a little bit of a crick in the back of his neck as a result.

'Of course. Two bacon and eggs, coming right up. I'll be back in a little while.' The air hostess continued on to the aisle behind Wally and Joey, the aisle that their parents were seated in.

'How much longer?' Joey asked, unsure of how long he'd been asleep.

'About thirteen and a half hours,' Wally smirked.

'...Oh.'

They sat in silence for a while, until their breakfasts came.

'How hot is it gonna be when we get to the airport, Wally?' Joey said, taking another forkful of fried egg.

'Ah dunno. Mum, what was the temperature meant ta be today?'

'Uhm, Ah think about thirty-four, wasn't it?' The boys' mother replied.

'_Thirty-four?_ That's freezing!' Joey exclaimed, to which Wally only laughed.

'No, she means thirty-four degrees _celsius,'_

_'_Oh.'

'That's about ninety degrees fahrenheit, mate.'

'Oh, okay.'

'The two finished breakfast, and ended up playing games on their father's tablet and Joey's activity book for the next hour.

But finally, the time came when sleep caught up with them, and the thought of ten more hours on the plane caused them to wind down a little. After a quick walk to the bathroom and to stretch their legs, they settled back into their spots, leaned the seatback into a more comfortable position, and ordered a movie on the screen on the back of the chair in front of them.

Before the movie could finish, though, they were asleep, only to wake up much later with the promise of lunch.

Or, was it dinner? Or breakfast again? The timezones can get confusing.

**-Eight hours later-**

'_Good afternoon passengers. We are about to begin our decent into Sydney Airport, Australia. The time is currently 2:37pm and the temperature is approximately thirty-six degrees celsius. We ask that all electrical items be switched off and all seatbacks and tray tables be returned to their locked positions. Please fasten your seatbelts. Thank-you!'_

Wally and Joey looked at each other and smiled.

'_Yesss!'_

**A/N: Okay, so that might not have been the _most _interesting chapter ever. At least it's something, right? **

**R&R, I promise next week's chapter will be better! Even if it is **cough cough** alittlelate **cough cough****

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	31. Ch 30, In Oz At Last

**A/N: Oh. My. God.**

**160 REVIEWS?! **

**Wow. Just wow. I have nothing else to say.**

**Except for 'Happy 30th chapter everyone!'**

**Read on.**

**PS In Australia, 'flip-flops' are called 'thongs'.**

**You're gonna need to know that, otherwise I sound like a creep.**

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Chapter 30- In Oz at Last

Rachel had been following Nigel since early that morning. She had risen at six am to go for a run, and spotted the brit coming out of his house, hugging himself in the cold and shivering as his breath fogged in front of him. '_Odd,' _she had thought to herself. '_It's winter break, why would anyone be up this early?'_

Alright, so _she _was up early, but, as Fanny told her again and again, she was 'different'. Rachel had never really understood what her friend meant by that. Even so, there was no good reason why Nigel would have been outside his house at five past six on a freezing cold morning.

She hadn't meant to start following him. Really. She just happened to be jogging in the same direction that he was walking, when she noticed that he was acting a bit strangely. One thing lead to another, and before she knew it, Rachel was jogging about forty feet behind Nigel, and just kept that up for a while, not even sure why.

But then, Nigel made a sudden turn, and Rachel frowned in confusion. Where was he going? There was nothing but an abandoned old house down that road!

She told herself not to turn. Said; '_This is none of your buisiness. Just keep going, straight ahead, and leave the boy with the sparkly brown eyes casting careful glances left and right to go his own mysterious way on this freezing December morning.'_

But, inevitably, even as she was telling herself this, she was making the right turn down the street Nigel was walking.

_Not a good idea..._

_Oh, quiet, you._

So Rachel just kept on walking, trying to stay out of sight, and a reasonable distance behind her target.

But it wasn't until she realised where Nigel was going that she became _really _suspicious.

~(*)~

'Wally, honey, don't forget your carry-on luggage!'

'Ya mean the bag Ah _just _pulled out? Nah, I won't forget that!'

Wally rolled his eyes at his mother.

'Come on, we've got ta get out of tha way. Others are tryin' ta get past!'

'To where? There are people in front of us and people behind us! We're loike a human sandwitch!'

And he almost face palmed because of his dad.

It took them nearly fifteen minutes just to get out of the plane, shuffling down a seemingly never ending aisle, arms getting tired from holding up their bags for so long.

Eventually, though, they did reach the outside world.

The first thing that hit the Beatles family was the heat. It wasn't really a _boiling _hot day, but they were used to the winter weather of America in December, and immediately all of them pulled off their jackets.

~(*)~

_Wow. It's really hot here.._

Joey pulled off his orange and white jumper, all the while, his eyes darting around, taking in all the sights that they could harbour in so little time.

He had been excited about this ever since way back when he had been told about the trip, back when he was still clueless about who his brother was.

He got _really _excited once the flight attendants announced that it was time to land.

Joey looked out the window, and saw blue sky. The same blue sky that he'd been flying through less than an hour ago.

He continued his darting around as the family headed for the luggage carousel, walking next to his brother, who was smirking slightly at his reaction to their surroundings.

The luggage carousel, though, was _not _interesting. Joey was almost bored (almost) as he watched buhmillions of bags that all looked the same, going round, and round, and round.

And round.

Twenty minutes, and some extensive groaning later, they were good to go. One of their father's brothers' family was supposed to be there to pick them up, so they headed out into what could only be called a lobby, but was big enough to be a warehouse.

It didn't take long for the Beatles to find the... other Beatles. They were the big, boisterous family standing pretty straight ahead as Joey and Wally and their mother and father exited the luggage area.

'Sid!' Their uncle called as he recognised them.

'Grant!' The boys' father returned. The two groups headed towards each other, and hugs were exchanged between the adults and the kids, though when the kid/kid situation arose, hugs were rejected in favour of awkward handshake-y sort of things.

There were six people there, in total, to greet the Beatles as they arrived; Auntie Kel and Uncle Grant, and four of their nine cousins; Sammy, Jack, Junior and Gabbie.

After the usual 'Look how big you are!' and 'Merry Christmas!' and 'How are things back in...' they all headed out to the cars. Both Kel and Grant had brought their cars, since obviously neither of them had a car that seated ten people. Joey and Wally, having had enough of their parents after fifteen gruelling hours, chose to go with their uncle and two of their cousins, while the other cousins, their parents, and Auntie Kel took the other car.

'So, how're things down here?' Wally asked, sliding into the front seat, even though his cousin Sammy was older than him.

'Pretty good, pretty good. It's been a real hot summer so far, though,' his uncle returned. Joey found it a little strange listening to these people speak with the same accent as him. He was used to it only being _his _family, and now he was in a place where he heard it from everyone.

It took them about half an hour to get to their cousins' house, where they would be staying. Joey was feeling a little overwhelmed, a little shy, opting to answer small and short answers when he was spoken to, otherwise just listening to the others' conversation. The radio was on, turned up loud so that you had to raise your voice if you wanted to be heard.

'Psst, Joey,' Gabbie, the other cousin that was with them, poked Joey in the side gently to get his attention.

'Uh, yeah?'

'You wanna know what were doing later today?'

'Okay.'

'We're going to tha beach!'

'Really? To Bondi?' Joey had been dying to go to Bondi beach ever since he heard how famous it was.

'Nah. We need a whole day ta do Bondi, mate. We're goin' down ta Manly.'

'Cool!'

Slowly, but surely, Joey began to settle in. He was sure he'd be comfortable here in no time.

~(*)~

The cars arrived at the house, a big, old place shaded by old gum trees. Joey looked around curiously, from the veranda to the balcony to the gate that lead around the back. He, Wally, and their cousins all helped to unload the bags, and, with slight difficultly, hauled them all inside.

Joey had no sooner finished dropping all his bags into a spare room than he heard barking. He went out to join the others, who were outside on the deck, and was instantly bowled over by a ball of fur, and showered with licks and a wagging tail.

'No, Jessie! Down, girl, down!' Jack scolded, rushing forward to take the dog by the collar and pull her away. Joey just laughed.

'Sorry about that. She gets excited,' Jack explained.

Jessie was a black and brown staffie, who looked only a few years old, and was now trying to jump up onto Wally, as well as their mother and father.

Wally was welcoming towards the dog, sitting down and letting it hop up into is lap. Strangely, after the incident with the were-poodles, Wally had grown to like normal dogs, mainly because normal dogs wouldn't try to eat _you _as well as your homework.

For a while, the adults talked, the boring 'adult' talk you couldn't even understand half of, and gruadually, the cousins drifted away into the lounge room, where Jack and Sammy set up a video game system.

'Anyone wanna play Rock Band 5?'

'Yeah! Ah've been _dyin' _ta play that game!' Wally enthused. Joey took a seat on the couch, assuming that the others would want to go first.

But...

'Hey, Joey? We need someone on drums, dude. You wanna give it a go?'

Joey sat up on the couch.

'Uh, alright,' he said, getting up and walking over to the plastic, coloured drumkit.

'Quick, Joe, the song's about to start!'

Joey looked from his cousins, to the TV screen, to the drumkit again. Then, a smile growing on his face, he picked up the drumsticks as the song began to play.

~(*)~

_What _is _this guy doing? _Rachel thought to herself, frowning in confusion as she ducked behind a tree.

Nigel was heading in the direction of that creepy old house with the tree out the back. But _why? _Why on _Earth _would he be going there, so early in the morning?

Rachel had to get to the bottom of this, or it was going to bother her forever.

Nigel turned into the house's drive.

Rachel followed close behind.

She hadn't known this boy for long, but she could tell that there was something _different _about him. He was bald, for one. What was up with that, anyway? Then, there was his mysterious past. Apparently, he had been studying overseas, when he fell and injured himself or something. But every time anyone asked him about it, he just shrugged and tried to change the subject.

There was something about this boy that Rachel felt she needed to know.

And she felt she was about to find out what it was.

So, she continued shadowing Nigel as he walked past the house and into the backyard.

Towards the tree.

In front of the tree.

Standing there, as if the tree was supposed to open like the mechanical doors at the mall.

But then...

_What._

_The._

_HECK?!_

~(*)~

'Joey, you are on fire!' Sammy exclaimed, looking back at him quickly, before switching back to the screen, unable to risk losing his combo.

Joey smiled again. He liked this game. They had it at the treehouse. He and Jake used to play it all the time.

The song finished, and Joey stepped down from the seat, heading for the couch. He'd been in for three songs, and thought it was probably time to let junior, the youngest of all of them, have a go.

'There ya go, Junior. It's your turn now,' Joey said to the seven year-old.

Joey sat on the couch, along with Jack, and joined in as he shouted 'woo, go Gabbie!' and 'Aw, come on, Wally! You can do better than that!'

And now, he thought, he was comfortable.

~(*)~

Rachel's eyes grew to the size of dinnerplates.

_WHAT?_

The tree -the actual _tree_- was beginning to slide back on itself, _just like the doors at the mall._

Alarm bells went off (metaphorically) in Rachel's head. She _needed _to know what was going on here.

Nigel, after casting a quick look left and right, entered the tree -entered _the tree_- and before she knew it, the opening sealed itself up and Rachel was left wondering whether she was hallucinating.

Suddenly, she was a bit afraid. She felt sick, sort of. A kind of sick that was implanted way down deep in her stomach.

Something was wrong.

She wondered whether she should go in after Nigel, but rejected that straight away. Who knew what could be down there? Anything, for all she knew.

She kept thinking about it, about Nigel, and the people he'd been hanging around with more lately; as well as Abby and Kuki, he was now getting friendly with Wally and Hoagie. And ever since then, he'd been acting a little strangely. Could those guys have something to do with what was in that tree?

She thought, and thought, until her thoughts began to get fuzzy. The sickness was worsening now, had made its way to her head now, too. She leant against the back wall of the house, then slid down until she was hugging her knees to her chest. Throbbing headache, sick stomach, and now thoughts manifesting from nowhere. This was not good.

Thoughts, faces, images, it wasn't much, didn't make anything clear to her, even the things she thought of were fuzzy around the edges, as if being spat out half-formed, but there was definitely something down there.

And that's what scared Rachel the most.

~(*)~

'Kids! Get your bathers on, we're going soon!' Kel called to the six of them, who were still in the lounge room. There was a cheer, and everyone scattered to their various rooms to find their beach things.

Joey and Wally headed upstairs to the room they were sleeping in.

Ten minutes later, they were all downstairs, in board shorts, rashies and thongs, and decked out with bags and bags of beach things; body boards, buckets, spades, towels, and heaps of other things.

'Alright then, let's go!' Joey's mother said.

And they paraded out the door.

**A/N: Okay, first and foremost, in Australia, 'flip-flops' are called 'thongs'. I'm not that inappropriate. I was debating whether to call them flip-flops or thongs, and in the end I thought that it was an Aussie chapter, so it should use Aussie language.**

**Okay, that's it, I apologise for the lateness and the shortness, I was tired. **

**NO MORE EXCUSES FROM ME FROM NOW ON! I'M MAKING THAT MY EARLY NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION. STARTING NOW, I AM A RESPONSIBLE, TRUSTWORTHY WRITER!**

**ehem... that is all.**

**-Numbuh 25 out**


	32. Ch 31, Almost There

**A/N: ...I'm so embaressed. I am inexcusably late.**

**I'm sorry.**

**That is all.**

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Chapter 31-

'Numbuh 2, we should be reaching Jamie's place pretty soon. We should land somewhere,' Numbuh 1 said from where he sat in the SCAMPER. Numbuh 2 saluted and proceeded to look for a patch of clear ground they could touch down on.

Numbuh 1 hadn't felt right that morning. He could have sworn he wasn't the only one walking to the treehouse.

The others had just rolled their eyes at him when he tried to tell them.

'Quit being so paranoid, man!' Numbuh 5 had scolded.

But he was still convinced that there had been someone there.

There was an electronic whir as the SCAMPER came to a halt on land once more.

'Are you sure she'll be home, Robert?' Numbuh 202 asked, hopping out of his seat.

'Positive. Jamie always sleeps in whenever she gets the chance.'

'Okay, I guess we're going in then.'

So, the nine of them headed around the back of the house, where Numbuh 263 had instructed them that Jamie's room was.

'Uh, guys?' Numbuh 3 called, her brow creasing.

'Yeah, Numbuh 3?'

'How are we supposed to get Jamie to come outside?'

...

There was no answer.

'We'll figure that out after we have the antidote ready,' Numbh 1 said, gesturing for Numbuh 2 to get out the canisters and measuring cups and other assorted apparatus he had brought along.

~(*)~

The old car that Wally and Joey were in pulled into a carpark next to the beach. The first thing you could see was, well, the sea.

They got out of the car, unpacked the mountains of things they had brought along and headed towards the sand.

Their thongs sank lower into the sand, and the loads they were carrying made it all the harder to walk on the sand.

Joey wondered if maybe taking off his thongs would help him walk easier. So, he stopped for a moment and removed the shoes from his feet, one at a time, and set them down bare on the sand.

...

'Ow!'

The sand was hot.

Really hot.

Joey (very quickly) got his thongs back on, and continued trudging through the sand with everyone else.

'Put that towel down here, Wallaby!' Wally's mother called to him. He was just looking into the ocean, how the water seemed to create its own light from the reflections of the sun.

Okay, he wasn't _completely _over his whole fear of the water thing. But he _was _better than he had been as a kid. He could swim (kind of) and he felt better if he had something like a bodyboard, something that floated, out with him, but he still kind of liked to stay to the shallower water.

'Alroight, mum. Can we go in now?' He replied half-spreading half-dropping the towel under the spot where his father and his uncle were trying to set up an umbrella, already making his way to the shore.

'Hold on, Wally. You need sunscreen first!'

'Awww, muu-_uum_!'

'Come on. You too, Joey! Both of you need sunscreen on before you go anywhere near that water.'

Wally groaned and reluctantly picked up the bottle of SPF 30, squirting some out into his palm. He got his arms, his legs, and his face, and then tried to squirm his way out of his mother's grip when she attempted to rub more on.

Eventually, he escaped, and headed with his bodyboard, to the water.

'Hey, wait up Wally!' Jack and Sammy called out, each dragging their own board down the beach. The waves were mid-sized; no large swells, but still good for boarding.

Joey looked longingly at the three older boys, as he sat, his mother still fussing about his sunscreen, and trying to paint his face pink with a tube of Zinc. Eventually, when she turned around to get yet _another _bottle of sunscreen or whatever, Joey ran, grabbed his old, second-hand board, and raced hopefully after the older boys.

Gabbie was already out there, her being smart, she had told the parents that she had 'put her sunscreen on back at the house', which may or may not have been true.

'You ever been bodyboarding, Joey?' She asked him as he finally reached where the others were standing. The water on them was only waist-deep, but for Joey, it was sloshing around just below his shoulders.

'Nope,' he replied.

'Just be careful, keep the wrist strap on, and if you get into trouble, stay calm and focus on floating. But that probably won't happen; it's pretty tame today.' Gabbie instructed, giving him a reassuring smile. Joey couldn't help but feel a little nervous. But, determined to prove he wasn't just a little kid who couldn't handle a wave, he mounted his board (with a little difficulty) and listened as the others gave him the basic instructions on what to do when a good wave came along.

~(*)~

'Are you sure this is gonna work, Numbuh 1?' Numbuh 3 asked, from inside the makeshift ice-cream truck that was supposed to lure Jamie outside.

'Of course it will, Kuki. It works every time.'

'Okay then. Start the music Numbuh 5!'

Abby pulled the switch, and the sweet, tinkling music began. Kuki began to back the van out of the driveway they were parked in.

'Woah!' The others cried, jumping to get out of the way.

'..Oops, sorry.'

They drove up and down the street for ages, but no-one came out of their houses. No-one at all, not even the kids.

...It took a while before anyone realised why.

'Uh, Numbuh 1?'

'Yes, Numbuh 5?'

'Remind me again why _anyone _would want to buy ice-cream in the middle of _December _at _seven in the morning!'_

_..._

'Okay, we'll have to regroup and come up with a new plan. Numbuh 2, what kind of an idea was _that? _Who wants _ice-cream _in _December?' _

~(*)~

'Guys! Come back in, I see the ice-cream truck!' Wally heard Sammy call from a little way into shore.

'Sweet! I want a sundae!' Jack cried.

'I want a blurpleberry icicle!' Junior chimed.

'Tutti-fruity all the way!' Came Gabbie.

Wally turned his board around and began paddling into the shallower water, wondering if they would have the pacific breeze flavour he liked.

Joey was having a great time. He'd even caught a wave! Or, maybe _it _had caught _him. _Either way, he'd done it. Bodyboarding wasn't really as hard as he'd thought it would have been. All you had to do was find the right wave and time it just right. Of course, you also had to make sure you kept the nose of the board _up _to avoid being dumped.

Joey had learned that the hard way.

Several times.

He made his way in with the others. His fingers were wrinkly, and his eyes were stinging slightly with the tang of saltwater, but he was happy. Really happy.

He wondered what was going on with everyone back home. Just for a minute. He hoped they were okay. The last thing in the _world _he wanted was to get back home and find out that his team had turned as well.

He pushed that thought to the back of his mind. He couldn't let his worrying ruin his vacation. His team was good. They wouldn't let themselves turn. And anyway, they had Wally's team with them, too. Safety in numbuhs, right?

Joey assured himself one more time that his friends would be fine, before bouncing off to order himself a choc-top.

~(*)~

'I don't know about this, Numbuh 1...'

'It'll be fine, Hoagie, just dial the number.'

'Uh, if you say so..'

The dial tones beeped out as Hoagie keyed in the Jamie's cell number, then held the receiver up to his ear.

_'It's ringing,' _he whispered.

It was a while before anyone answered.

'H-hello?' A groggy voice said, from through the phone.

Hoagie put on the voice he had been practicing.

'Hi,' he said, trying to sound 'cool'.

'It's that... uhm, really popular guy from school.'

'Who?'

'You know, that, uh, really cool, _cute _guy.'

Hoagie covered the speaker with his hand for a minute.

'Did we not think of a _name _for this guy?'

The others just shrugged, so Hoagie uncovered the speaker and went back to talking to Jamie.

'So, what do you want?' Jamie asked, audibly trying to stifle a yawn.

'Uh, I was wondering if you wanted to.. go on a date with me.'

There was a moment of silence.

'Really? At 7:30 in the morning?'

Hoagie shot Nigel another 'we could have thought this through more' look, before saying;

'Yeah! I thought we could go out for breakfast.'

...

'Alright then. Where will I meet you?'

'At the coffee house down Main street in ten minutes?'

'Sure, whatever.'

She hung up after that.

'So what do we do now?' Numbuh 2 asked, putting the phone away.

'We wait outside the door with sleeping gas,' Numbuh 121 answered, already loading up a dart gun.

'Everything's sleeping gas with you, isn't it?' Nigel stated, remembering back to just before he was recommissioned.

'Hey, if it ain't broke, don't fix it,' Numbuh 505 justified, marching over to a position near the front door.

Numbuh 5 laughed.

'Haha, girl's got a point, Numbuh 1,' she said.

'The sleeping gas sure worked pretty well with you!'

~(*)~

The Beatles family had been at the beach the whole afternoon. It was getting into evening now, and the kids were sitting on the sand, burying Wally.

'Who wants fish and chips for dinner?' Uncle Grant called to everyone from under the slightly wonky umbrella. Everyone cheered.

So Grant took everyone's requests and the car and left for the strip of shops in the nearby street.

'You did pretty good out there, Joey,' Wally said, attempting to blow a fly out of his face with his breath.

'Thanks! But you were much better,' Joey replied.

Wally just laughed.

'Did you know that when Ah was your age Ah couldn't even go _near _water Ah was so scared?'

'What?'

'It's true mate. Ah was terrified!'

Joey laughed quietly.

'Y'know, Christmas is in a couple of days,' Wally continued.

'Yeah. It doesn't really feel like it though. It's too hot,' Joey stated.

'Mm. But it's a good way to be spending christmas, 'ay?' Jack cut in, flopping himself down on a towel behind the boys.

'Yeah. Yeah, it is.'

The sound of a car door closing behind them caused them all to turn around (Well, Wally had a little trouble with that).

It was Grant, back with the fish an chips.

'Who wants dinner?'

The kids broke into a chorus of 'I do, I do!' and the food was served.

~(*)~

'Is this girl gonna come out already?'

_'Sh, sh, sh!'_

'I'm just saying, she's been in there for like-'

'_Shut up, Kuki!'_

The kids back home had been hiding around Jamie Clearway's front doorstep for almost fifteen minutes, and everyone was beginning to get uncomfortable.

Numbuh 5 shifted in her spot, trying to loosen her legs, which were starting to cramp.

But then, finally, they heard footsteps coming down the stairway, and readied themselves for a quick fire. They readied the knock-out gas shots.

Door opened.

Split second.

Walking down the front steps.

Split second.

Shots fired, Sudden realisation.

Split second.

Too late.

Jamie was hit. She blinked vacantly a few times, sort of swaying on the spot. Breaths were held as they waited to see if it would work.

Then, Jamie sat down in the middle of her front step, then layed down.

Then, she was out cold. There were a few seconds of hesitation, just to make sure that she was really out, then, they got to work, everyone at once.

'Okay, Numbuh 2, get whatever you have to ready, Numbuh 3 and Numbuh 5, get her on a stretcher. Go!' Numbuh 1 instructed. Numbuh 121 copied, handing out orders to her team as well.

Robert, however, just got up and moved over to where Numbuhs 3 and 5 were starting to pick Jamie up and move her onto a stretcher that they'd had.

If this all went right, Jamie would be back, back as Numbuh 8,860 and back as his friend.

All they could do right now was hope.

~(*)~

Joey took another bite of his potato cake, enjoying the _crunch-_ingsound it made. The sun was beginning to set, and he could not have been happier. His brother, with considerable difficulty, had pulled himself out of the sand, and rinsed all of it off by order of their mother.

The water had darkened in colour, from the clear, bright blue it had been to a darker, deeper looking sapphire.

Wally came running back up the beach, shaking out the water from his hair.

'There,' he said, panting and sitting down again. 'Ah'm clean. Can Ah eat now?'

'Sure, kiddo!' His father said.

So Wally and Joey, and Jack and Junior and Gabbie and Sam, and Grant and Kel and the boys' mother and father spent the rest of the night running around in the dark orange twilight, playing tiggy and a bit of beach cricket and rolling down the little sandhills until it was time to go home.

And for just a little while, Joey's fears and worries completely left his mind.

Just for a little while.

~(*)~

Robert looked on wile Jamie's sleeping body was elevated on the stretcher, until she was positioned high enough for Hoagie to use T.H.A.T.T. on her.

'Are you sure it's going to work, Numbuh 2?' he asked, not taking his eyes off of Jamie.

'You want the truth? I have no idea.'

**A/N: I know. I'm late. I should be punished. But, as a gihugic THANK YOU for not tracking me down and tearing my head off, I'm gonna get the next chapter to you SOOPER FAST. I swear! Operative's honour!**

**Bye for now! Next chapter will be the **_**Christmas episode!**_

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	33. Ch 32, Merry Christmas!

**A/N: Ha! Told ya I'd be quick! Back on track baby!**

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Chapter 32- Merry Christmas!

'Hoagie, she's on the verge of waking up, do it now!' Numbuh 1 called, his voice betraying distress.

Jamie Clearway was about to regain consciousness.

But whether Numbuh 8,860 would wake with her, they didn't know.

Hoagie quickly finished filling the syringe with the violet-coloured liquid, and went about carefully injecting the serum into Jamie's right arm.

'Alright,' he said, tossing the empty canister onto a tray and sighing deeply in relief.

'It's done. We only have to wait for her to wake up now.'

And then, they would know whether Hoagie's formula worked or not. Robert nodded silently, deep in thought.

The others looked from him, to the girl lying asleep on the stretcher, before taking the hint and deciding to leave him with her.

All Robert could think is what would happen if this thing didn't work. What would come of Jamie? If the antiote had to effect, or worse, a negative effect, would Numbuh 2 and the other KND scientists be able to fix whatever was wrong?

Robert let out a subconscious sigh, and sat down next to the stretcher, leaning against the side of it.

For a while, he just sat there, playing a little game with himself on his fingers.

He had never realised that this would be such a big deal to him. He had always thought of his and Jamie's relationship as just a friendly one, even if he had liked her. But this was really taxing on him; everything that had happened from the moment that the turning problem had arisen, to when he found out that Jamie was one of those who had turned, to this very moment, wondering if they'd finally figured it out.

There was a stir from above him.

She was waking.

Robert scrambled to his feet, his hands gripping the bed's metal rails so hard his knuckles turned white.

Jamie wriggled a little, giving a small groan. Then, finally, her eyelids began to flutter.

Everyone crowded around the stretcher, watching on in deep suspense.

But nobody was more tense at this moment, than poor little Robert.

As the girl's eyes slowly opened, the full weight of that moment hit everyone head-on.

Another sleep-drowned groan.

'Wh-what happened?' she asked.

'Robert? Is that... you?'

Nobody was sure about what thay meant. Did she remember Robert just as a person? Or did was she back as a KND operative?

There was only one way to find out.

'Numbuh 8,860?'

...

'Robert? Robert! Sector V! You're- I'm- the Kids Next Door... _what happened?'_

She was back. She sat bolt upright as she recognised Numbuh 263 and the younger Sector V, and just stared around with wide eyes.

Robert couldn't help himself. He broke into a ridiculously huge smile and grabbed Jamie into a tight hug.

Jamie was dumbfounded, and sat there, dazed and still slightly confused, but found it in herself to hug Robert back.

It was at that moment that everyone erupted into celebration; the formula for the antidote worked, and _T.H.A.T.T. _meant that soon enough, they would be able to bring back all the turned operatives.

They had cracked the case.

~(*)~

Jamie and Robert had gone back up to moonbase, later that morning. They had done a lot of things; breifed Jamie on absolutely everything that had gone on since she had turned. She was particularly interested (and who would blame her) in how they brought Sector V back from the darkest realms of the decommissioned. And after a while, they just ended up sitting against one of the walls of Robert's office, with their knees hugged to their chests.

Jamie was talking, with her hands layed upturned on her knees, speaking into her palms like her words were actually meant for them.

'I can't believe I actually _turned,' _she said again.

'Well, you did,' Robert said.

'But that's not entirely a bad thing.'

'Huh? Why not?' Jamie looked over to him and tilted her head.

'Because you have just proved that the antidote works, and now, because you turned _back, _we know that all the other turned kids can be cured as well.'

...

'Yeah, I guess when you look at it that way...'

_**3 days later...**_

_Sydney, Australia- 6:04am_

The entire house was silent. Peaceful, sleepy, with the first chimes of the morning birds outside.

'Dad_, mum, dad, mum!' _

The silence was broken.

Joey was in the room that his parents were sleeping in, jumping up and down on their bed.

'_Mum, dad, mum, IT'S CHRISTMAS!'_

Joey's father rolled over, groaning groggily.

'Ah, Joey, couldn't you have waited until _after _the sun rose?' His mother asked, yawning.

'But _Santa's _been! He's been _here!' _Joey's argument was fully functional to him, but apparently, to his parents, it just wasn't convincing. So they sent him back to bed, where, somehow, Wally had managed to sleep through the whole episode.

His parents had told him that he had to wait until at least seven-thirty.

That left only...

One hour and twenty minutes.

Great. He supposed he could get out his handheld game console.

That ended up entertaining him for about twenty minutes, until it just ended up being boring. And for the life of him he just couldn't get back to sleep.

But then something strange happened.

You see, Joey had his handheld system rigged up to communicate with KND transmitters. Back home he used it a lot to talk to his teammates when he didn't want anyone to know what he was doing. It was much like instant messaging; type in a message and send it, but only the official KND equipment in the area would receive the message.

The weird thing was, the light in the top corner that went off when it detected KND hardware was flashing.

Joey squinted at it, wondering if it was just a simple malfunction. But it was definitely flashing.

He pressed a few buttons, and brought up the messaging program.

He hesitated. What was this thing? How far away was it?

But then, what was the worst that could happen? This was an official KND system he was detecting, so it must belong to a real KND operative.

So, he proceeded to type:

_Hello! I'm Numbuh 404 of Sector V. I come from the US, but I'm down here on holiday, and I picked up your device. What's your Numbuh?_

_Over._

He waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Nothing. Hm, maybe it was just a glitch or something.

But then, just as he was about to give up and turn the device off, he was caught off gaurd, and almost jumped out of his skin when the handheld system vibrated with a coming message.

_Hello Numbuh 404. I'm Numbuh 61. I am in Sector AU._

_You're from the US? I have cousins down from there for Christmas as well._

_Over._

That's a coincidence,Joey thought. He wondered where Numbuh 61 might be. The range of Joey's communicator was pretty huge; they coul be anywhere around the entire state.

...or...

..Or they could be just across the hall.

Joey decided to try something.

_Hey, what's your name? Because I think I might have heard of you._

_Over._

A little under a minute, and then;

_Gabbie Beatles. Why? Where do you know me from?_

_Over._

Joey read the message at least five times before he was sure of what he was seeing. _Gabbie, his cousin _was in the KND. _As well _as his brother.

Was _every _Beatles a KND operative?

_I know you because I'm in the room next to you! Gabbie, I'm Joey!_

_Over._

In addition to that, Joey tapped on the wall behind him lightly, knowing that Gabbie's room was directly to the back of them.

_What? Joey? You're in the KND?!_

_Over._

Haha, wait til she found out about Wally!

_Yeah! And get this, right- did you know that Wally was in the original Sector V? He's Numbuh 4!_

_Over._

Gabbie was sitting in her room, on her bed, talking to who was apparently her cousin, Numbuh 404, and chewing on a toffee from her secret candy stash.

She had gotten a bit of a shock when her KND communicator went off, an even bigger shock when she found out that Joey was a KND operative, and a _huge _shock when she found out that _Wally as well _was in the KND.

Her eyes grew to the size of dinnerplates as she read the message, and she replied only thirty seconds after the message had come through.

_WHAT?_

_Over._

She couldn't believe this.

Not only were her cousins KND operatives, but one of them was a _famous_ KND operative!

But hang on...

_Isn't Wally sixteen? As in, decommissioned?_

_Over._

Joey replied;

_It's a long story. I'll tell you soon. Wait a minute- it's 7:30!_

_Over and out._

Gabbie laughed, then put down her transmitter.

It was Christmas time!

And so, in a few minutes, it started again.

'_Mum, dad, mum, dad!'_

_**Meanwhile, back in the US...**_

It was 3:30am, so nobody was really awake.

Except for Rachel.

She couldn't stop thinking about that incident with Nigel. What had happened that morning? She had no answer, none whatsoever.

She was just sitting there, her mind coming up with increasingly ridiculous explanations, then tossing them out the window as quickly as they had come.

She willed herself to stop dwelling on the matter; after all, it was Christmas morning. Surely she had better things to occupy herself. But no, she just couldn't move her mind from that one morning.

Okay, that was it.

She had to know.

She picked up her phone, keyed in Nigel's number, and pressed 'call.'

Okay, it was 3:30 in the morning, and nobody in their right mind would call _anybody, _let alone an exchange student you had known less than a year, but Rachel was beyond common sense at the moment.

~(*)~

It was the morning of Christmas, and all through the house,

not a creature was stirring... (except for the hamsters)

And Nigel was nestled all snug in his bed,

While visions of Rainbow Monkeys danced in his head...

Until he was rudely awakened.

Nigel opened his eyes to a mad vibrating on his bedside table, and took a guess at who was calling.

'Hoagie, I don't care what you've done this time, for Pete's sake let me _sleep!'_

_'_Hoagie? I'm not Hoagie, I'm Rachel,' came the reply.

Nigel hit himself in the head with his lower palm.

'_I'm so stupid,' _he muttered inaudibly.

'Oh, uhm- hi, Rachel,' he tried to say casually.

'Hey, Nigel.'

Silence..

'Uhm...merry christmas?' Nigel said, not exactly sure what this girl was doing calling him at this rather _sleepy _hour.

'Mind telling me what you're doing at-' Nigel checked his clock- 'mmm, three thirty-nine in the morning.

'On Christmas.'

Rachel seemed a little sheepish about something.

'Uhh, you see, well...'

'Rach, I'm kinda not in the mood for waiting around, so can you just tell me what you want?' Nigel stated plainly, surpressing a yawn; he'd been woken up early twice.

And that was two times too many.

Rachel sighed, making Nigel really wonder just what was going on here.

'Okay,' she said.

'You know the other morning when you were walking, really early, like six am?'

'Yes...' Nigel began to wonder where this was going. How did Rachel know?

'Well, I was kind of out jogging that morning, and, well, I was just going the same way you were, and, yeah.'

Rachel did the best she could to stop it from sounding like she had been stalking Nigel for an entire morning, and she _certainly _didn't want to mention the incident after that.

The weird feeling, the sickness she had gotten, had somehow knocked her out. It wasn't until a while afterward that she woke to full daylight, quickly making her way home.

For the rest of the day, she just felt slightly off-colour.

'You were following me? For how long?'

'No! ..Uh, I mean, no, I wasn't _following _you, I just happened to see where you were going and I kinda went in that same general direction.'

'So following.'

'...That's not the point! The point is, that I saw you going _into _that tree, and I want to know what gives!' Rachel said, annoyed with her own embarressment.

It was at that point that Nigel swore his heart missed a beat.

Rachel saw! She _saw _him going into the treehouse!

'Wh-what do you mean?' He said, trying his best to think of some sort of excuse.

'Don't give me that! I know you were doing something and I want to know what it was! Were there others in there or was it just you?'

Both of them paused to decide which answer would be more creepy.

'It wasn't just me,' Nigel said finally, with a sigh as if to say 'I give up'.

Nigel knew fully well that he was basically walking on a minefield. He could trigger something at any moment, and he had to be careful of what he said. If it was bothering Rachel enough to call at three-thirty in the morning, it had to be really consuming her.

But still, there was that little part of him that _wanted _her to know.

'Who else was there?'

'Hoagie.'

Gasp.

'Wally.'

Another gasp.

Nigel braced himself. The next two were pretty good friends with Rachel.

'Kuki.'

Huge gasp.

'Abby.'

Really big gasp.

Okay, so they were less 'gasps' and more just expressions of shock. Rachel was dumbfounded that so many people she knew, not to mention _Abby and Kuki, _who she knew so well, had somehow forgotten to tell her about all of this!

'What were you guys _doing _up there? Seriously! And why in a giant treehouse? Is this some kind of a weird club that I don't know about?'

Rachel was at the point where she was whisper-shouting into the phone, not wanting to wake anybody up- especially not her brother in the next room. He could be a real pain...

'No, Rachel. It's hard to explain... I really need to be there when I tell you. Maybe we could meet up after Christmas sometime? I _really _want to go back to sleep now,' Nigel said, almost pleading with her. If Rachel was going to really find out about this, Nigel was definitely not gonna do it over the phone.

Rachel paused, before replying reluctantly;

'Okay, then.'

'Alright. Goodnight Rachel, and merry Christmas.'

'Merry Christmas, Nigel.'

The line was disconnected, but both of the teens stared at the phone for at least half a minute each before finally putting it down and tugging the blanket up once more.

_**Back in Australia**_

'Holy crud, look at all these presents!' Joey yelled as he peeked around the corner.

Presents of all shapes and sizes under the christmas tree.

All the kids and all the parents flocked into the living room, marvelling at all the shiny wrapping paper and stuffed stockings.

Junior ran into the room, squealing and jumping for joy, running over to the christmas tree after Joey.

The others stood in the doorway, taking in all the Christmas spirit before it disappeared under a pile of torn wrapping paper and unbreakable twist ties.

Later that day, after all the presents were unwrapped (Joey receiving a shiny new bodyboard and a few video games he'd been wanting for a while, and Wally a touch screen mp3 player and a whole stack of CDs) the family set off for their _other _uncle and aunt's house, where they were meeting up for Christmas day.

_Wow, _Joey thought, after he'd gotten dressed (with his bathers underneath, of course. Thisuncle and aunt's house had a pool) _There's still like eleven people left to meet!_

So, they set off, windows down to help cool down the boiling interior of the car, and pumping up the radio.

If Joey had figured out one thing abou this family, it was that it was big, and they were boisterous.

He liked that.

He and Gabbie had exchanged a few looks, and a couple of words here and there, but they were all really too consumed by the Christmas thing to actually pay too much attention to KND related anything.

The whole day was just one big blur for both Wally and Joey. There was so much to do, so many people that they hadn't seen in so long, and a _heap _of catching up to do.

By the end of the day they were all full of Christmas food and pavlova and chocolate ripple cake, and their fingers were wrinkled from being in the pool for too long.

It was a hot day, so most of the day was spent _either in _the pool, sitting on the _side_ of the pool with your legs dangling in the pool, or sitting in one of the deck chairs _near _the pool.

A few of the highlights of the day included...

The time that Kylie, one of their sixteen year-old cousins, tricked Wally into the pool (the deep end, naturally)

_'Ay, Wally! Think fast!' She said, chucking a beach ball in his direction. Wally fumbled to catch it. He managed to get a grip on it, but at the same time, lost his grip on the deck._

_SPLASH!_

_'Kylie!' Wally yelled angrily, while everyone laughed loudly at Wally, who was trying to scrabble his way to the edge (he still wasn't fully comfortable with the idea of deep water)._

The remote control helicopter that five year-old Vinnie had gotten, that provided lots to laugh about.

_'Psst, Vinnie! Gimme tha remote for a second,' Sharon said. When her brother handed her the control for the device, she promtly used it to steal a candy cane right out of Uncle Mick's hand, guiding it back until it was hovering just above her, before sticking out her own hand and dropping the candy cane perfectly into it. That earned her cheers from all of the other kids, and an eye-roll from all of the adults._

And the sight of the three uncles, Mick, Johnathon, and Grant, as well as the boys' own father, fighting over how to get the speakers in the loungeroom working.

_'No, no, ya've got it all wrong. Ya plug tha red wire in here, then push that button,' Grant insisted._

_'No way! Ya've got ta switch that input ta "HDMI",' Johnathon insisted._

_'That's for TV! We're tryin' ta put on a CD, so we've got ta switch on tha sound box first,' Mick interjected with assurance._

_But none of their theories worked. It wasn't until the oldest of the cousins, Katie, came along, rolled her eyes in that 'teen' way, sat down, and without a word, pushed her uncles and father aside, proceeding to simply adjust a knob and push a button, and the music started._

_But one of the men, in an attempt to see if it was just turned down too low, had switched the volume to its maximum, and the music pounded out at a deafening volume. It seemed like forever before they finally figured out how to get it back to a reasonable loudness again._

_There was an awkward silence._

_And then, uncontrollable laughter._

So it had been a great Christmas for the Beatles family, and they all went home that night feeling happy, well-fed, and very, _very _tired.

As for the Christmas of everyone else in the team...

Well, _that _is a completely different story!

**A/N: So, what do you think of the Beatles family Christmas? I just did Wally and Joey's Christmas in this chapter, but I will have the others in the next chapter, I swear.**

**R&R like always, and..**

_**MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!**_

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	34. Ch 33, Three-Sixty-Who?

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Chapter 33- Three-sixty-who?

Abby yawned.

'Well, I'd better get to sleep now,' she said, leaning back on her pillow.

It was about 1:30am, about an hour before Rachel's call to Nigel, and she was _still _video chatting to Hoagie.

'Yeah, I guess so,' he replied, sounding just a little bit disappointed.

'I'll give you your present tomorrow!' Abby said with a smirk, knowing that would cheer him up.

'Really? Yes!' He instantly perked up again.

'Alright, I need to sleep now. Goodnight, Hoags! Merry Christmas!'

'Merry Christmas to you too, Abby.

Abby hung up, layed down and pulled her blanket up as high as it would go. It was cold, really cold.

She thought about how priceless Hoagie's face was going to be when he unwrapped his present. She had looked far and wide for the perfect thing to get him, and when this little thing walked in, she immediately knew that it was perfect.

Her mind wandered onto the events of the days before that night. Everything since Hoagie's antidote had proven itself effective. They had decided that they could at least wait until after Christmas day before they went out on their big massive mission of figuring out how to turn everyone back. But they had a plan, one that would involve an attempt to gather all the turned operatives in one place.

Whether or not it would work, she didn't know, but it was still worth a shot.

And so, as her thoughts grew fuzzier and sleep grew nearer, she smiled. Everything would be fine from then on. T.H.A.T.T. worked perfectly on the turned operatives, and as soon as they put it to use, the whole nightmare of Chemical Z2A would be over.

~(*)~

_Pfft, some merry Christmas this is..._

Dr. Colter sat alone, cold, uncomfortable in his hard stone cell. He'd been here for weeks, seething, trying to think of a way out. He had plans, oh, he had plans, but he wasn't going to put them into action just yet, no. He had to wait for juuust the right time. And he knew exactly when.

Until then, he was just stuck sitting inside this stupid Arctic prison, with nothing but a thin cotton blanket to keep him warm, while the stupid little snot nosed prison-guards were all warm by the fire, talking about leaving soon to get home for Christmas.

There were less kids around here than there should have been, that was one thing that Colter could be satisfied with. The KND had to be seriously lacking in numbuhs to have cut down on the guarding department.

That was a pro.

But the one big con; being stuck in this dump until he was sure he could escape undetected, seemed to overtake all the others.

All the Doctor could do now was sit and wait, and try not to let his temper get the better of him as he attempted to block out the imprisoned Teen Ninjas in the next cell.

'Ohmygosh, I can't _believe _Josh asked Jenny out.'

'I _know_, right? I hope they don't turn into, like, a _thing.'_

'No way! I mean, he's a jock and she's in the _math team. _It's like, against the rules of love!'

'Oh, hang on, got another text coming through.'

_Deep breaths, deep breaths..._

~(*)~

Nigel had a hard time getting back to sleep after his talk with Rachel. His mind was split in two; one wanting to let everything spill out and tell Rachel about what she used to be, the other maintaining the position that he couldn't.

Back and forth the argument went, just from one side to the other, sometimes one side would be winning, sometimes the other side would win, but it wouldn't stay like that for long.

It was hours before he finally drifted off, and even then, it felt like only a few seconds before his mother appeared over him, waking him up on Christmas morning.

That had happened to him twice already.

'Good morning, Nigel! Merry Christmas!'

Nigel just groaned, deeply.

'Morning,' he managed.

'Guess what?'

He was not really in the mood for guessing games right now, instead focussing all his remaining energy on the one action of sitting up on the side of his bed.

'What.' He put it bluntly.

'It snowed!' His mother replied excitedly, pulling up his shade to reveal a street that was lined with white.

Nigel woke up a little more after that view, mainly because his mother had opened the window, and that snowy breeze was _freezing. _He made himself get up and slip on a jacket and head downstairs.

The sight of the christmas tree seemed so much _fuller _than it had last night. There was something about that image that just felt complete now that there were presents and packages and stuffed stockings on the fireplace.

'Yes!' Nigel yelled, running over to where his little pile of presents was. He had a minor childhood flashback, and got a small rush of that feeling you got as a kid, entering the lounge room to find the cookies eaten, the milk glass emptied, and the end of the reindeers' carrot out on the doorstep.

Nigel began to open his presents, which were really great; a new laptop (yay!), a few books, some new clothes, and a new CD player.

After that, they had their traditional Christmas breakfast; Nigel's mother's pancakes, drowning in maple syrup.

Next up was the family Christmas. In the car the Unos got, off to Monty's mother's house.

Nigel looked out the window as they drove,at all the snow, at all the children playing with new toys and laughing and smiling. He thought of Rachel, and what he was going to say when they met up later that evening. He had never come to a full decision, so he wasn't even sure whether he wanted her to find out yet.

If he didn't, though, he had better start thinking of excuses.


	35. Ch 34, Three-Sixty-Who? Pt 2

**A/N: Uuuhm, I think when I tried to update last time, it only posted half of what I wanted to post. This chapter was meant to be 13 pages long, but I think now it's going to be split into two chapters, because of my STUPID LITTLE LAPTOP! ...I need a new laptop...**

**READ ON TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS!**

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Chapter 34- Three-sixty-who? Pt. 2

Nigel was still in the car, still stressing, still trying to calm down.

Truth or lies?

Serious or friendly?

How was he meant to do this?

Maybe he'd just have to wing it. But that didn't fit. Nigel Uno _never _'winged it'. He always had a plan, a rational sequence of action, but he just couldn't think of one right now.

_Come on, _he thought, _I need a Christmas miracle..._

~(*)~

Abby yawned, stretched her arms out above her head. A pretty good night's sleep, even with the late-night video chat to Hoagie.

She shivered as she tossed off the covers, feeling the cold reach all the way through her. She grabbed a dressing gown from the end of her bed and slipped in on, heading over to her window to open it up, where she got a pleasant surprise.

The snow made a crunching noise as the opening window pushed it off the sill. The street below was freshly dusted with a clean, pure white.

She was about to begin downstairs when she noticed the message light on her phone flashing.

_Strange, _she thought, _who would text me on Christmas morining?_

She unlocked her phone. The message was from Rachel, from _four o'clock that morning._

Abby wondered what it could be, thinking that maybe her friend just had trouble getting to sleep and texted her to say merry Christmas just to pass the time?

She opened it, and _really _didn't expect what she saw.

_Abby why didn't you tell me? What is going on with you and Kuki and those other boys? I need to know!_

_I honestly thought that we were good enough friends that you would have told me this, but..._

It stopped that adruptly.

Abby was shocked. Rachel usually never displayed the slightest bit of anger when she spoke or wrote, but this message seemed even _hostile. _

What did she know?

And how?

Abby put her phone down. There was no use trying to come up with a reply, she wouldn't be able to. There were too many questions, and Rachel seemed to want too many answers. Abby would have to talk to the others before she said anything she might regret.

For the moment, all she could do was try not to stress about it too much, otherwise it might ruin her Christmas. So, she left her room and made her way downstairs.

~(*)~

'Kuki, Kuki, Kuki!'

'Mmph, Mushi... get off me.'

'But it's Christmas, and you have to get up before I drag you out of that bed and down the stairs myself!'

Mushi was jumping on Kuki's bed.

Kuki just moaned again, pulling the pillow out from under her head and using it to cover her ears.

It didn't stay there long.

Mushi ripped it off in one motion, letting it tumble off the bed, where it lay discarded on the far side of the room.

Kuki responded by sinking under her blanket, but surprise surprise, that also left the bed in a matter of seconds.

'Okay, fine, I'm up, I'm up...' Kuki mumbled, picking herself up as if she weighed a million tonnes.

She began to follow Mushi down the stairs, before realising that _her _phone was also flashing.

_Kuki, I want to know why you were out there that morning, with Nigel and Abby, and why __I__ wasn't there. What were you doing? Please tell me! I need to know. _

Oh, no. Kuki's first thought was _how did she know? _and the second was _I need to tell someone. _But then, she thought, she wouldn't want to disturb their Christmas morning with something to worry about. Maybe she'd just keep it to herself until a better time.

She left her thoughts and returned to find Mushi pulling her by the sleeve of her flannelette pyjamas down the stairs.

**10 hours later**

Nigel's mind was going at a million miles an hour.

He had been at his grandmother's house all day, and the whole 'coming up with an excuse' thing has slipped his mind completely. He had absolutely nothing. Not a clue on what he was meant to say, how he was meant to tackle this situation. Now, he was walking towards the park, slowly, trying to buy himself some time, on his way to meet Rachel. His hands were balled in his pockets, he was shivering slightly. _Oh gosh, _he thought, hitting his forehead with his palm, as if that would make him think better,

_what am I going to do?_

Rachel's mind was going at a million _and one _miles an hour. She had been with her family all day, and the whole 'meeting with Nigel thing' had almost slipped her mind.

She walked fairly tensely, not sure what to expect from this meeting.

She regretted sending those texts to Abby and Kuki that morning. She had been confused, slightly angry, and most of all, hungry for answers.

Before she knew it, and seemingly much quicker than usual, Rachel was at the park. Then, her heartbeat _really _intensified.

She sat down on the nearest park bench. Her quickened breat was causing a mist in front of her.

She watched the kids, outside, playing in the snow with sleds and snowballs and imprints of angels on the ground.

And then, there was a shadow beside her.

'Uhm, hi Rachel.'

She jumped.

'Oh! Oh, hey Nigel.'

Silence.

Nigel sat down on the edge of the seat.

More silence.

'Okay, so Rachel...' Nigel began, tapering off at the end, as if unsure whether he wanted to push out the next sentence.

Rachel looked at him expectantly.

'You see, I...' Nigel was avoiding eye contact with Rachel, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

'Go on...' Rachel spurred. Her curiousity was growing. If it was this big a deal, she _had _to know.

'Can we go somewhere more private?' Nigel finally said, casting a glance left and right, seemingly put off by the fact that there were people around. Rachel looked at him, not quite sure what she should say. But then, Nigel seemed to somehow gain control again, and simply said;

'Come on, if I'm going to tell you what I was going, we have to go somewhere else.'

He got up and moved away, and Rachel obediently followed.

And what do you know, five mintues later, they were at the very place that started this whole thing.

The two of them stood behind the house, too nervous and tense to lean on the wall or sit on the narrow concrete siding.

'So, what were you going to tell me?' Rachel said.

'Okay, I'll start like this. What was your childhood like, Rachel?' Nigel began, this time seeming more sure of himself.

Rachel was a little thrown off by the statement. What did that have to do with Nigel and Abby and Kuki's little 'club' in the tree that hid just around the corner.

She was thrown off, as well, because she had no _real _answer to that question. She had no idea what her childhood was like. She tried to fib her way through the question.

'Uh, pretty normal, I guess.'

Apparently, Rachel was a horrible liar, as the only response she got from Nigel was one raised eyebrow; that look that said 'I want the truth.'

Rachel sighed.

'Alright, alright. I don't remember anything from before I turned thirteen.' She confessed.

'That's alright, Rachel,' Nigel reassured, much to Rachel's surprise.

'What? How is it alright? I have no recollection of _anything _from when I was a kid; no birthdays, no friends, no nothing.'

Rachel sat down against the side of the house.

'It's alright because I wasn't able to remember anything before _my _thirteenth birthday either.'

While Nigel joined her sitting on the concrete, Rachel gave him yet another weird look.

'What do you mean _wasn't? _You mean you can now?'

Nigel sighed.

'It's complicated. But, something happened to me when I turned thirteen, something that happened to you, too. And for me, a little while ago, the thing that was done... kind of... un-did.'

Rachel opened her mouth, as if she was about to speak, but nothing came out. All she could do was sit there and wait for Nigel to continue talking.

'You see, Rachel, when we were kids, we were in this sort of _club. _And this _club _was set up to kind of help kids when they were being... being _disadvantaged.'_

Nigel had to choose his words carefully. He had come to at least one conclusion; if he had come this far, he may as well go the whole way.

Like it or not, Numbuh 362 was coming back.

Now, he just had to do it carefully and gently.

'Oookaay...' Rachel said slowly, signalling that she was ready to hear more.

'And, when you turn thirteen, you aren't really a kid anymore, so you are kind of, _decommissioned _from the club,'

Suddenly, Rachel's head was pounding.

From the _inside._

'Wha... wh...' was all she could seem to murmer, holding her head in her hands.

Then, something came to her.

And the words started again.

'Nigel?'

'Uh, yeah?'

'When I look at the moon, sometimes, I think I'm somehow thinking about something that I don't really understand. It's like, like someone has walked into my head and put these little, isolated thoughts in there, and then forgotten to put in the explanations or the meaning of the thoughts.

Does that, maybe, have anything to do with this?'

Nigel sat there, for a minute, open-mouthed, unsure of what to say. Presently, he simply nodded, no words, just a simple, little, nod.

'Rachel,' he said finally.

'Yes?'

'I'm going to try something on you now, to see if maybe I can get those thoughts to make sense. I'm going to say some things that you won't understand at first, but in the end, hopefully it's all going to work out.'

Now it was Rachel's turn to sit open mouthed and muted, just going over and over and over Nigel's last sentence. Feelings filled her up inside, among them anticipation, longing, anxiety and straight out fear.

'And when I try this, you might feel some strange things. But I want you to just let them go, okay? Don't fight them, just let them do what they want to do. It'll be easier for _you _if you just leave them be.'

The battle in Rachel's mind subsided. She wanted to know what was going on here, especially since she was apparently somehow involved as well.

This was a chance she was just going to have to take.

'Okay,' she breathed, barely audible.

'Go.'

Nigel took a deep breath, as if his next words would take twice as much air as usual.

'Numbuh 362, this is Numbuh 1, reporting for duty!'

_Boom, _another sharp pound on the inside of Rachel's mind.

'Numbuh 362, we need to refuel, we'll be stopping at moonbase shortly.'

Rachel tried to speak, but almost ended up gagging. She remembered what Nigel had said; _just let it go._

'Numbuh 362, it's meatball sandwitch day, you wanna go grab some lunch?'

Rachel buried her head in her knees, trying to cope with the violent sways and bouts of nausea she was getting now.

What was going on now? What was Nigel doing? Effecting her so much with words she didn't even understand?

'Numbuh 362, I'm afraid Numbuh 86 and Numbuh 60 have done a bit of damage on the bridge in another one of their _'games_.'

Lights now began to appear before Rachel's eyes. She was fading, losing consciousness.

What was this?

She should have been scared, should have been trying to run, even though she couldn't, not now, but she was strangely calm, almost willing to let herself go, as Nigel had asked.

It only took one more.

'So, why don't you want to be _it _any more, Rachel?'

She was out cold in the next seven seconds.

~(*)~

It was getting dark when Rachel finally woke up, in a room she vaguely recognised. It was big, open, with a couch and a large TV screen.

It took her a few seconds to realise what had happened, and a few more to realise that there was someone sitting next to her, looking at her intently.

'N-Numbuh 1?' she stuttered, pushing herself up on one elbow.

'Numbuh 362! It worked! You're back!'

Rachel frowned, and then, it clicked. She remembered what had happened.

And she remembered everything before that.

She gasped about as loud as she had ever gasped before, and threw herself off the couch and onto her feet.

'Oh my gosh, Nigel, Numbuh 1! I- I remember! Everything- everything's back!

_'I'm back! Nigel, I'm back!'_

~(*)~

**A/N: OOOOOH! BAM! Numbuh 362 is back again!**

**That's pretty much it from me for now, I'll see you later! ;)**

**R&R, as always!**

**-Numbuh 25 over and out**


	36. Ch 35, Boxing Day and Lost Kids

**A/N: It's been like a kabillion months. I really want to get into it now. You can find the pleading sorry note at the bottom.**

**Read on.**

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Chapter 35- Boxing Day Sales and a Bunch of Lost Kids

Nigel and Rachel were in the treehouse, deep in conversation, the day after Christmas.

They sat cross-legged on the lounge floor, ignoring the couches next to them.

'So Dr. Colter has _really _been back?' Rachel said in disbelief, after Nigel had explained Sector V's endeavours in the past weeks.

'Yeah. Been and gone though, I guess. He's locked up in the Arctic prison right now. But I'm not so sure that that's the end. It was all too... easy.'

Rachel nodded thoughtfully.

'Hm, maybe. I guess we just keep an eye on him for now, right?'

'Yea, I guess.'

They sat in silence for a while.

Until Rachel remembered a very rushed, angry text from early on Christmas morning, and instantly blushed in embaressment.

'Uh, Nigel?' she said, rubbing the back of her neck awkwarly.

'Yeees,' Nigel replied suspiciously.

'You know that call at 3AM yesterday morning, where I got all angry when you told me that the rest of the guys were here too?'

'Uh-hu.' Nigel narrowed his eyes at Rachel's uncomfortable behaviour.

'Weeell, I _might _have gotten a little annoyed at that, and maybe I wasn't thinking straight, or maybe it was because I was feeling- _betrayed...'_

'Rachel, what did you do?'

'I sent Abby and Kuki a text telling them that I was really mad and that I needed to know what you were doing.'

Nigel's eyebrows shot up.

'It _maybe might _have come off as a little enraged.'

'Oh.'

'So, I _maybe, just might _get a few strange looks from them...' Rachel said, mentally cursing herself because of her stupid rash actions.

Nigel didn't take long to catch her drift.

'And you want to go explain to them,' he finished, leaning back on the wall.

'Yeah.'

'Okay, well let's go then.' Nigel began to get up.

'But isn't it a bit early?'

'No. Hoagie deserves a payback for the early morning calls he's been giving me. And I can bet that Abby will be wherever he is.'

'You mean-'

'Yep. Together again. About a week ago.'

'...Huh.'

And with that, the two of them left.

**Sydney, Australia**

For those of you out there who don't know what Boxing day is, that is the official name of the 'day after Christmas'. And in Australia, it is a pretty big deal. Other than the usual post-Christmas activities (toy-testing, leftover-eating, and couch-lounging) there is the boxing day test (a big cricket match that starts on boxing day), and the Boxing day sales;

The day when the more saving-crazed people go absolutely all-out in the clearance sales that the stores put on to get rid of excess holiday stock.

The Beatles family, despite not being the type to participate in these chaotic sales, had something planned for the day that was sure to make it interesting.

'So you're actually goin' ta let us do this?' Wally asked, raising an eyebrow.

Their parents- that is, Wally and Joey's parents, as well as their uncles and aunts, had just issued them a challenge;

a whole city of shopping centres, two hours and three-_hundred_ dollars between them, to buy whatever they wanted in the crazy sales.

'Yep, it should be fun for all of you!' One of their uncles replied.

That resulted in a chorus of cheers from all of the kids.

'As long as ya don't waste all tha money or start fighting ova it.'

'This is going ta be _awesome!_' Joey cried. He had his eye on a couple of new videogames for his console back home.

'When do we go?'

'Now.'

**US time- Kuki's place**

Kuki was in her room, listening to her new CDs and beginning a few sketches in a new notebook, humming along to the music.

_Knock, knock, knock._

Kuki looked up, in the direction of the front door.

'Mushi! Are you going to get that?'

...

No answer.

Kuki rolled her eyes and pushed herself off the end of her bed.

Stretching herself out and yawning as she walked, she reached the door.

'Oh, hi Rachel! Hi Nigel!' she greeted in her usual sing-song way.

'Good morning Kuki.' Nigel said.

Kuki suddenly remembered something. The text from Rachel. She blushed and bit her lip.

'You're not still mad, are you Rachel?' she asked.

Rachel smiled in a knowing way that Kuki could not explain.

'Oh, no. I understand everything now, _Numbuh 3,' _she replied.

Kuki froze. Her breath stopped in her throat. Her mouth dropped open like something had slackened the muscles in her jaw.

'Numbuh 362? Rachel you're back! Ah, this is so awesome!'

Then, she got her movement back, and grabbed Rachel in a tight hug.

Nigel laughed to himself, as Rachel slowly turned blue, telling Kuki in a strangled voice that she 'would rather keep breathing'.

Kuki finally released Rachel, though she still had a large smile across her face.

'Have you told Hoagie and Abby?' she asked.

Nigel shook his head.

'Not yet. We were going to now. Do you want to come?'

'Of course!'

The three of them left Kuki's house as soon as she had gotten her shoes on, with Kuki babbling on and on in the background.

~(*)~

Joey and Wally sat in the back of their uncle and aunt's car, looking in awe at no less than _fifteen_ twenty-dollar notes.

They were on their way into the central shopping district, right in the centre of Sydney.

'Ah can't believe they're letting us do this!' Gabbie exclaimed from the seat next to them.

'Ah know! We can pretty much get anythin' we _want, _in tha _whole _of Sydney!'

The car pulled into the main road, grabbing a park on the outskirts of the roads. It was about five or so minutes before the car holding the other half of the kids pulled up, found a park at a reasonable distance, and joined them on the sidewalk.

'Okay,' the boys' father began, 'it's undoubtably goin' ta be _chaos_ in there, so Ah want you kids ta be careful, okay? And we want you all to meet us at the Cafe on tha corner in two hours, roight?'

All of the twelve kids nodded eagerly and excitedly.

'And Ah want you all ta stay togetha, and make sure ya take care of tha little ones.' Uncle Grant added.

More nodding, even from those who their uncle had meant by 'little ones'.

'Alroight then!' Their mother called, clapping her hands together.

'On ya marks.'

The children span and set their sights on the main shopping complex, which was a fair way down the block.

'Get set.'

They took a deep breath in.

'GO!'

And off they went, barreling down the pavement, much to the surprise (and annoyance) of the other pedestrians present.

It wasn't long before the group had reached the mall, rocketed through the doors and stopped dead in their tracks.

It.

Was.

Mania.

People everywhere, running, hurrying, yelling to friends and yelling _at_ people who got in their way.

These were adults, grown men and women running around like this was the last time they were ever going to buy anything, ever.

And in less than two seconds flat, the feeling; the desperate, flighty, hyperactive feeling, caught on to the twelve children standing there.

And they were off.

'Where do we go first?' Sharon yelled to the others over a small riot.

There was a cacophany of shouts and requests, until Jack held up his hand for people to stop.

'Why don't we start with Big W? We can all find something there, roight?' he reasoned. Big W was pretty much the equivalent of Wal-mart in Australia; clothes, electronics, music, toys, lollies, and a _lot _in between. Jack was right; everyone could at least find something they liked in Big W.

They looked up to the directory sign, which listed Big W as straight ahead.

With one look across at everyone in their little band, they were once again sprinting like their life depended on it.

The store, housing aisle after aisle of slashed prices, seemed like a warehouse to the kids.

Katie, the oldest girl of the group, being nineteen, headed straight over to the clothing rack, calling back something about 'meeting them out the front in fifteen.' while the others began towards the back of the store, where the toys and games were.

But it wasn't as easy to find what they were looking for as they thought.

There was people _everywhere. _The whole kids' area was absolutely _jammed _with people, kids, grabbing things and running and shoving things under the price check scanners; nobody remained stationary for longer than two seconds.

The children were frozen in shock. Until Jack snapped out of the daze and yelled;

'What are we waitin' for? Go, guys, go!'

And they, too, shook themselves out of it and ran off in the direction they wanted; board games, electronics, girls.

Of course, Danny and the twins, being too little to go off on their own, were instead picked up by Sharon, Sammy and Wally, and with hands grasping tightly so as not to get lost, they were taken as well to the aisles in which they could find something they liked.

~(*)~

Hoagie had arrived at Abby's place that morning, jittery and excited. He was getting his present from her this morning.

_What would it be?_

She had said it was going to be good, and to Hoagie, that meant the _best ever. _

He had fidgeted in the cold outside her door, his breath misting in front of him, knocked on the door, and smiled his awkward smile to Abby when she opened the door.

'Morning, Hoags,' she said, ushering him in so she could shut the cold out again.

'Morning,' Hoagie replied.

Abby said nothing, but just beckoned for him to follow her upstairs, with a small, excited look on her face.

They reached her room, and sat on the bed, talking for a while. Abby brought up the text from Rachel; Hoagie was just as baffled.

And then, Abby pulled out Hoagie's gift.

It was small, wrapped in simple red and green.

'Merry Christmas, Hoagie,' she said warmly, handing it to him.

Hoagie looked down at the little package for half a second, then immediately began tearing off the wrapping paper.

Inside was a box.

Hoagie opened the box.

Inside the box was a covering of tissue paper.

Hoagie tore off the tissue paper.

Bubble wrap.

He tore off the bubble wrap.

Underneath the bubble wrap was another box.

Hoagie opened the box... again.

It was empty.

Hoagie frowned in confusion. _What? _He looked up at Abby, looking for an explaination. She looked at him expectantly, as if he was supposed to have seen the most amazing gift ever inside that _empty _box.

'Soo...?' She beckoned.

'So what?'

'What do you think?'

'Well, to be honest, I'm not really thinking anything of it, uh... y'know, since it's- uhm...'

'What? You don't like it? I- I mean, I can return it if you want.' Abby said, in a concerned manner.

Hoagie was just confused beyond measure.

I mean, Abby could _see _the box. She could _see _that there was nothing in it. If there was meant to be something on it that had maybe been accidentally misplaced, she could _tell_.

Hoagie hesitantly, unsurely reached down to feel the inside of the box, in case of the unlikely event that the box might have contained something invisible.

There was nothing there.

And now that he thought about it, he must have looked pretty stupid trying to grasp at nothing.

Abby's smile grew.

Then grew again.

Until it was no longer a smile of anticipation, but of amusement.

'Abby-' Hoagie said after a while.

'There's- uhm, there's nothing in this box.'

And with that, Abby burst into fits of laughter.

That was when Hoagie realised that he'd been duped.

She shook his head in disbelief.

'Really?'

Abby nodded; 'Yup. I couldn't resist,' she said, still stifling laughter. 'Now do you want your _real _present?'

'Yes. Yes I do.'

Abby pulled out another, larger wrapped parcel from behind her.

'This is your _actual _present,' she said, handing it over.

Hoagie opened up this gift, to find a colourful package inside, with a big title across the front.

'Is this...? It is!' Hoagie cried in disbelief.

Sitting in that box, strewn with shreds of wrapping paper was an old model plane kit, from the old hobby shop that Hoagie used to go to. The box was slightly tattered, the corners even a little scorched.

This box was one of the original series model planes from _Mr. Washer's _hobby shop, before The Kidd had blown it up.

'I found it after the shop was destroyed. I don't know why I kept it all these years, but even when I was decommissioned, I just couldn't bring myself to throw it out. And then, when we were _re_commissioned, I... yeah,' Abby explained. Hoagie was dumbfounded. This was amazing! He hadn't seen old-school model planes like this in years!

'Th-thank you,' he stuttered.

'I love it.'

Abby smiled again.

'I thought you would,' she said.

~(*)~

Wally frowned in concentration as he tried to count out all of his cousins, making sure that they hadn't left anyone behind. It was hard to get an accurate number because of all the movement and bustling from the background, and the fact that the group was spread out, jumping and agitated from the atmosphere caused by the

a) Joy of getting money to spend

b) The rush of being left to spend it as they wanted and

c) The chaos that was the shopping centre at the moment.

In fact, a few of them had been in the wars over the things they wanted to buy. For example, Sammy had spotted a DVD box set of his favourite TV show, and ended up in a very competitive game of tug-of-war with another boy, who, in the end, was disappointed. But Sammy, despite being the victor, was still left with a scratch from the corner of a display shelf and a bruise from walking into the back wall.

Luckily though, after a lot of counting and yelling to people to _'stand still for a cruddy minute!' _he got everyone accounted for, and made sure that they were still in one piece, before leaving the store, meeting Katie out the front and heading off.

'Where ah we goin' now?' Gabbie yelled over the top of the cacophany.

'Ah don't know!' Jack cried back.

Kylie gestured to them to follow her.

'C'mon!' We're goin' upstairs!'

The others followed, weaving in and out of people to get to the escalator.

Next stop was a beach store. That meant surfboard wax, cool hats, t-shirts and bikinis (for the older girls, of course). But it also meant piles and piles of gum-chewing, texting, OMG-ing teenagers, all competing for the same range of suftwear.

The kids picked their way into the shop, pushing and shoving until they got a look at the racks of clothing.

Joey, who was in the middle of jumping up to try and get a look at a cap on top of one of the shelves, took a look down at his watch. It had only been forty-five minutes since they had arrived.

'This is gonna be a _looong _day,' Joey said to himself.

~(*)~

'I'm not saying we have to recommission _everyone. _I'm just saying that Fanny is one of my best friends, and that maybe there might be room for her to join in on the case,' Rachel was saying as she, Nigel and Kuki made their way to Abby's house.

'I know you want her back, Rachel, but just because you're friends, that doesn't mean that she is automatically allowed to be recommissioned. I'm already probably raising trouble just by recommissioning you without discussing it with Moonbase first.'

Rachel sagged. She really wanted Numbuh 86 back, but apparently, Nigel wasn't going to be convinced easily. Of course, Kuki had been persuaded with just a little nudging, but then, she and Fanny had a better relationship, since Kuki was a _girl._

But Kuki had raised a thought about something that Abby had told her about concerning Fanny and a _certain somebody._

_'_Oh, oh hey guys! I have to tell you something!' she cried, remembering what had happened.

'You'll never believe this. I heard from Abby that when she and Hoagie were out, that they saw _Patton and Fanny _out on a date!' Kuki bubbled, giggling madly.

Nigel and Rachel's reaction was simultaneous;

'_What?!'_

'Uh-hu! They're _going out _now! Can you _believe _that?'

Again, the two others spoke in unison;

'No!'

'Geez, I never thought _that _would happen! I mean- they- I thought they hated each other!' Nigel stumbled. This just made no sense to him. None at all.

Rachel, though, knew a little more on the subject.

'I'll admit, I didn't think it would ever happen either, but I did have my suspicions that they might have liked each other.'

They kept walking and talking, until they got to Abby's door.

_Ding-dong!_

They heard voices coming down the stairs, and Abby opened the door.

'Oh, hey guys,' she said, looking just a little confused.

'Hi,' Hoagie called from behind her.

'Okay, so we have something to tell you guys,' Nigel began, unsure of how to explain this. But Rach seemed to have it covered. Without hesitation she began;

'It's nice to see that you two are back together _again.'_

'Whaa...' Abby said, creasing her brow in confusion. Hoagie just stood open-mouthed until the moment that they both realised what that sentence implied.

'R-Rachel? You've been recommissioned?'

'Yep.'

'Wow... when did that happen?'

'Nigel did it. Yesterday.'

'Okay.'

Hoagie thought that this was just a little out of the ordinary. I mean, if he had had his guess, Hoagie would have said that Nigel would have been reluctant to recommission anyone. But maybe it was just because it was Rachel.

That would make sense.

'Well, it's good to have you back, Numbuh 362. Has Nigel told you about the situation?'

'Yes. I detail. I understand it's under control though?' Rachel reported, feeling the nostalgia of being back in work mode run through her.

'Yeah. We were actually just about to call _you, _Numbuh 1, and ask when we were going to start this whole antidote operation.' Hoagie added.

'Well, why not now?' Kuki chimed.

The others looked between themselves, as if to see the others' reactions.

'Okay, then, if we're all okay with that, we can start today,' Numbuh 1 said.

'Meet at the treehouse in an hour?'

There was a chorus of 'yeah's, and everyone went on their own ways, going back inside or heading to their own houses to grab anything they might need.

It was going to take a while to rally all the remaining operatives on moonbase, explain the antidote to them, and send them back to their own Sectors to cure their teammates and other operatives.

A long time indeed.

~(*)~

'Oi! Give that back, ya stupid teen! I -ugh- had it -guh- first!'

Sharon was at war. With a teenage girl.

Over a shirt.

'No way, little brat! I _need _that shirt!'

'Huh-uh!'

'Uh-huh!'

'Huh-uh!'

'Uh-huh!

'_Huh-uh!'_

_'Uh-__huh!__'_

'Give...it...to...me!' Sharon yelled.

That shirt was _cool._ Her parents were always on her to wear a shirt over her bathers. This was the only shirt that she would _willingly _wear.

She _needed _the shirt more than any stupid teenager who probably only wanted it so she could look good at a stupid party or something.

Gradually, the teen's grip on the shirt slipped. Until it altogether escaped her manicured fingers. Sharon was flung backwards, hit the ground hard, and was up and running towards the counter, all within five seconds. She thought she was safe in the crowd. But the teenager was on her tail just as soon as Sharon herself had gotten up.

'Come back here!'

Sharon ducked, weaved, and made it to the counter, pushing the rest of the line (okay, so there was no line. There was an almighty cluster of people waving things in the air and trying to get to the front. Sharon, being pretty small, managed to slip up to the front, handing a five dollar note to a completely overwhelmed casheir, grabbing the plastic bag that they put the shirt into, and running for her life out of the claustrophobic store.

She finally stopped once she was out, and stood for a minute, panting heavily.

Katie was waiting out the front again, with the little ones.

'Got caught in a one-on-one, eh?' she observed, noting Sharon's lopsided ponytail, untidy clothing and dazed look.

Sharon just nodded.

Mellie and Vinnie came over to her, holding up the little toys they had gotten with their money.

'Look!' Vinnie called to her. 'It's a mini-monster! This one's special!'

'Thats...great...Vin!' Sharon managed between deep breaths.

Mellie and Danny showed her their stuffed toys and craft sets, and they waited there until the others made it out, all of them breathing heavily and clutching bags like they were holding onto their lives as well. Joey was last to make it out, finally finding a small hole to shove himself through, then proceeding to proudly pull on the hat he had won from another boy.

'Okay,' Wally heaved, leaning back on the wall.

'That's enough for _that _store.'

They left, trying to find places that weren't as overly crowded as that particular store.

They visited a media store (a five-way battle for a pair of headphones between Junior, two ten year-olds and a mother-and-son), a bookstore (no major physical fights there, but there was a name-calling match between three year-old Danny and another toddler), and finally, a jewelery shop for Katie and Kylie, where they ended up in one of the 'biggest slapfights of the day', according to the girl at the counter.

By the time the two hours was up, everyone was overloaded with bags, a little bruised and a little battered, but satisfied with the results of their quests.

They finally escaped from the centre, the air outside seemed a lot more open than usual.

'Hey guys?' Wally asked, looking around for somewhere to go. 'Where were we supposed ta meet tha adults again?'

There was silence. In the chaos of the sales, nobody had remembered where they were meant to go now.

'Great. Just great,' Sammy said sarastically.

'We're lost in Sydney. On Boxing day.'

'Did anyone bring a phone?'

...

'Okay then, Ah guess we just wander around aimlessly until we find something we know then.'

Nobody objected.

So off they set.

They spent almost half an hour just trying to find a street directory.

And once they finally found it, it was a long time before it was any use to them, because they had no idea what the place they were going to was called.

'Any of this sound familiar to anyone?' Jack asked. He got a chorus of 'No', and a lot of shaking heads in response.

'Hang on,' Gabbie began, pointing at a point on the map.

'Wasn't the cafe called the 'City Extra' or something?'

Realisation moment.

'Yes!'

They tried to work out the directions from the map, and set off in the direction they thought they needed to go.

Ten minutes later, though...

'Dude, we're not meant ta be at tha _monorail _station!'

'Ugh, we musta' gone tha wrong way.'

'Look, here's a map.'

They figured out that they had taken a wrong turn here, gone too far down there... it was all very confusing.

So they backtracked, and by the time they had _finally _gotten back to their parents, it was getting late, and they had been getting worried.

But at least the whole ordeal was over.

And at the end of the day, they had gotten some pretty cool stuff.

~(*)~

It was about 10am by now, and Rachel and the others were in the treehouse, about to contact Robert to tell him about what was going on, about the antidote and Rachel and everything.

'So, you think you're ready to get back into work, Numbuh 362?' Hoagie asked. 'If I recall correctly, you once tried to get out of the job 'cause you thought it was too much.'

'What?' Rachel replied. 'Robert's the Soopreme leader now. I won't be taking that job back, right?' Don't get her wrong, Rachel really didn't mind being Soopreme leader. But after all these years, and being thrown straight back into a situation like this in less than a day, well, Soopreme leader?

Thanks, but no thanks.

At least, not at that moment.

Rachel had a _lot _to get reacquainted with before she even _thought _about something like that.

~(*)~

**A/N: Please, please forgive me?**

**I'm sooper-double-mega-triple sorry!**

**And... and I love you.**

**I REFUSE to be this late again.**

**Goodbye!**

**-xoxo, Numbuh 25**

**(...Sorrry)**


	37. Ch 36, Here We Go Again

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Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 36 – Here we go Again

'Jump harder!' Gabbie yelled to Wally, who was standing on top of his suitcase.

'Ah can't! Ah'm already jumpin' as hard as Ah can!'

Wally's case was crammed full of about a billion things. And the zipper just would not close.

'C'mon, just jump up and then sit on it as ya come down. Weren't ya supposed ta be tha "_Butt-busting world Championship winner ten times in a row"_?'

Wally just scowled at her.

It was the day after boxing day, and the day _before _Wally, Joey and their parents were due to leave Australia. Joey had spilled the beans to Gabbie about everything that had happened, and it turns out that the problem had reached the shores of Oz as well.

Looks like Colter had correspondents all over the world.

Actually, one of Gabbie's own team had turned, about a fortnight back.

They had spent hours talking and talking about serious stuff as well as stupid stuff, _including _Wally's history of pavement-breaking.

'So, do you know whether Numbuh 2's made any progress with the antidote?' Numbuh 61, Gabbie, asked, heaving with all her might against the zipper.

Wally shrugged. 'Dunno. Ah'll talk to 'im this afternoon if we 'ave time, Ah guess.'

They tried closing the suitcase one last time, and when that didn't work...

They gave up and went to get lunch.

**Moonbase**

When Nigel, Abby, Hoagie, Kuki and Rachel made their way up to the Moonbase that evening, things were just getting packed up. If you could call it that. There were still kids sleeping up there, even though word had gotten out about Colter's capture. Maybe it was because they just felt safer up there now. Maybe it was because they wouldn't have to face the possibility of running into a turned operative up there. Maybe it was just a habit. But still, they were up there, and moral seemed to be a little higher now that they knew that no-one else was going to be turned.

Heads turned as the teenagers walked in, a few kids waved, called out things like 'way to go,' and 'you've done it again.'

Rachel also got some reognition, only from the older ones, though.

But overall, Sector V were smiling as they thought that Moonbase was now a happier place than it had been when they first arrived a few weeks ago.

Their first stop was, of course, Robert's office. They knocked on the door and he answered within ten seconds, meaning he was obviously eager to get this thing started.

'Sector V! Hi!' He said, ushering them into his office enthusiastically.

'And Numbuh 362, of course! Welcome back.'

'Thanks, Numbuh 263. It's great to be back.'

Everyone took a position around the room, since there wasn't enough chairs for everyone, leaning on the walls or sitting on the desk or such.

'So, are we getting this meeting started straight away?' Robert asked, taking his seat in is own chair.

'Yeah. We'd love to begin as soon as you can get everyone together,' Numbuh 1 answered.

'In that case, I'll put out the announcement straight away,' Robert said. But before he did it, Hoagie interjected.

'Wait! Before you do, has Numbuh 8,860 had any side effects or anything? Is she doing alright?' Being the creator of the serum that cured Jamie, he felt it was his responsibility to ask whether or not he had ultimately failed.

Robert thought about this for a minute.

'No, she hasn't,' he said finally. 'She's been fine. Really good, actually. She's up on the bridge right now.'

'Okay, then. Good. Continue.'

The PA system started up, and an announcement was projected all through the Moonbase speakers, as well as any KND alert systems around the globe, which made doubly sure that all operatives received the message;

_Calling all KND operatives,_

_There is to be an urgent meeting on Moonbase in fifteen minutes. I repeat, an urgent meeting on Moonbase in fifteen minutes. All agents must attend. No excuses. That means you, Jimmy._

_Over._

There was a short fizz of static as the PA finished, and Robert put down the microphone. Upon a few puzzled looks in response to the last segment, he explained;

'Jimmy has a reputation for being late to approximately _every_ meeting we hold here.'

'Uh-hu...'

'Well, that settles that, then,' Abby said. 'We've got fifteen minutes.'

'So what do we do?' Kuki asked.

Robert shrugged.

'Dunno.'

'Maybe we should call the other Sector V? Just to let them know what's going on?' Hoagie suggested. It just didn't seem right to him to leave them out of it. Of course, they would have gotten the meeting alert as well, but still, an explanation seemed right.

So Robert got out an old transmission device with a speaker and a large screen, keyed in a code and pressed a button.

There was a dial tone, then the sound of ringing.

'Hello?'

The picture popped up on the screen; the inside of the young Sector V's COOLBUS.

The four kids who were inside gave a salute.

'Numbuh 263, sir!' Numbuh 121 greeted from her captain's chair.

'At ease guys,' Robert said, as he'd said it a million times before.

'So, what's this whole meeting about?' Numbuh 202 called from off-screen, where he had moved back into his pilot's seat. 'I mean, other than the antidote.'

'Well, we have some pretty exciting news guys,' Robert began, taking hold of both sides of the screen. And turning it around to face Rachel he simply said;

'Say hello to Numbuh Three-sixty-two!'

Three quarters of the team on the screen went silent.

Numbuh 303, on the other hand, remained solely oblivious... at least for a few seconds.

'Hi Numbuh 362!' She bubbled, waving happily.

'Hang on- what?'

Rachel seemed caught off guard, obviously not expecting to be introduced right at that moment.

'Uhm, hi, everyone!' she said, giving a small wave.

'You recommissioned her? You brought her back?' Numbuh 505 said in disbelief. Rachel felt strange being referred to like that. Not sure if she minded it or not, being talked about as if she was something that could be fished out or thrown back.

'Yep. Numbuh 1 did it yesterday morning.'

'Wow... well, hi, Numbuh 362! It's an honour to finally meet you.'

Rachel felt herself blush.

'Uh, thanks,' she replied, smiling widely, albeit sheepishly.

'So how are you guys hanging?' Robert asked, continuing the conversation.

'We're alright. We're moving back into the treehouse tonight. How about you and Jamie?' Numbuh 121 reported.

'We're doing well. Things are picking up around here. I think we'll be back to normal in less than a month, if that's the time it takes to cure everyone.'

'Good! That's great. So we'll see you at Moonbase then?'

'Yeah.'

Numbuh 121 waved.

'Bye then!'

'Okay, bye. End Transmission.'

The screen went blank.

Robert stretched out, got up from his desk, and gestured for the others to go with him.

'C'mon,' he said, yawning slightly.

'Let's get to the arena.'

~(*)~

'Wally! Are you _still _not packed?' Wally's mother called to him from inside.

After they had put aside trying to close Wally's bursting suitcase, they had pretty much forgotten about it altogether. Now, they were out in the backyard, throwing around a volleyball over a makeshift rope net.

'Oh, Mu-uum!' Wally dragged, catching the ball and momentarily pausing their game. 'My bag won't close! It's not _my _fault!'

His mother just rolled her eyes, and went back to talking with all the other adults.

Wally threw the ball up, and powered it across the net with a spike.

'So, ya wanna go ta tha beach one more time this aftanoon?' Gabbie asked, setting the ball over again.

'Yeah, sure.'

'Joey, this one's coming to you!'

Joey perked up, caught sight of the ball as it sailed over the rope.

'Ah got it! Ah got it!' He called, moving backwards to position himself perfectly.

'Ah got it!'

He was still moving back, when he stepped back into an outgrowing tree root, and ended up flat on his back on the grass.

'...Ah didn't get it,' he said meekly.

The others were staring at the fence as Joey pulled himself to his feet.

'What ah we lookin' at?' He asked, puzzled.

'Tha ball went ova tha fence,' Wally explained.

But nobody moved, and that kind of made Joey feel uncomfortable. He furrowed his brow.

In fact, Gabbie, Jack and Sammy were looking horrified, while Wally and Joey just looked on in confusion.

Then, suddenly, simultaneously snapping out of it, the three of them started back off towards the house.

'Well, that's tha end of that, then!'

'Too bad. Game's ova now,' they were saying.

'Wait, wait, wait,' Wally cried, running to catch up to them.

'Why does tha game have ta end? We can just go ova tha fence and get tha ball!'

The others span around to face him.

'That's Mr. Kerry's garden,' Gabbie said simply, as if that was all the explaination they would need. As if it was obvious.

'So?'

Jack's turn to speak.

'So people don't _go _inta Mr. Kerry's yard,' he explained.

'He's not exactly the nicest person alive,' Sammy summed up.

'He's got this huge dog, and, and...' Gabbie drifted off, looking in annoyance in the direction of the fence.

'And when kids' things go ova that fence, they _never _come back,' Jack finished.

Wally stared. 'So, ya just gonna let it happen? Ya not gonna even _try _ta get it back?'

'Welll... no.'

'Come on! We can do this! We're Beatles kids! We can do anythin'!'

Soon, a rally was made, and Wally had everyone fired up and ready to take a stand against the evil adult presence that loomed beyond the wooden fence.

**Exactly 37 minutes, 27.95 seconds later**

Wally, Joey, Gabbie, Jack and Sammy scrabbled over the fence, desperately trying to get a good enough grip to haul themselves over the fence, which suddenly seemed a lot higher. Behind them, 'Killer' the dog was barking and snarling fiercely.

The five of them, one at a time, each dropped to the ground with a heavy thud.

Joey was last, clutching the volleyball tightly in one hand.

Sammy, who had landed hard on his side, rolled over to face Wally.

'That... is the last time... we try _that,' _he said between breaths.

**Moonbase**

'Kids Next Door... _Attention!' _Numbuh 8,860 shouted to the kids in the meeting arena. Usually, she had to use a megaphone to get everyone's attention (unlike the _previous _head of decommissioning, who could silence the whole convention centre with her voice), but since there were still not many agents left, she could do it alone.

Robert took the stand.

'Kids Next Door Rules!'

The others copied;

'_Kids Next Door Rules!'_

'Hi everyone. First of all, I just want to say that things are looking great around here. Now that Colter has been aprehended, everyone is looking a lot better.'

He then sobered, just a little.

'Now, first things first, before I get down to buisiness, I would like you all to meet a new edition to the teenage team here.'

He stepped aside to let Rachel up to the stand.

Nostalgia and routine flooded her as she felt the shape, the feel of the lectern and the crowd, however small it may have been.

'Hi, everyone,' she began, a little shakily.

'I'm Rachel, I'm Numbuh 362, and... well, I'm back!'

There was sudden silence, then cheering. That made Numbuh 362 feel proud. Very proud.

'Thank-you all! I mean, I know that this whole thing is pretty much over, but I would be honoured to be a part of helping you all get things back up and running around here. If I an offer some help, or do anything that might make any of this easier for any of you, I would be overjoyed. It's great to be back guys. Thank you all!'

With more cheering, Rachel took her seat on the couches behind the stand, next to Sector V, leaving Robert to deliver the good news about the antidote to the crowd.

'Now, guys, I bet you've all heard rumours about people being brought back after they have turned, and I know that Numbuh 8,860's reappearance has confused you all, so I think that needs to be cleared up. I am extremely excited to tell you, that after months of research and trail and error from Numbuh 2 and the KND scientists, we have finally come up with a cu-'

Robert was abruptly cut off when Numbuh 556 burst into the arena door, yelling something at the top of her lungs. It was only when she made it the full way in that anybody could comprehend what she was saying.

'Numbuh 263! Numbuh 263!' She cried, her breathing heavy, upset, and her hair untidy and disrupted.

'Numbuh 263! Arctic Prison called.

_'Dr. Colter's escaped.'_


	38. Ch 37, Lockdowns and a Rescue Mission

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Chapter 37- Lockdowns and Rescue Missions

The stadium went silent after Alana's worried announcement, and for a while, all you could hear was her own heavy breathing, as she straightened back up after being doubled over, panting.

It felt like a long time before anyone spoke.

A few people, including Sector V and Rachel, had jumped to their feet when they had heard, just a sort of reflex, and hadn't sat down.

Robert cleared his throat; as the one still standing at the stand centre-stage, kids were slowly starting to look to him.

'Uhm, Numbuh 556, what exactly did Arctic Prison say?'

Alana stuttered.

'Th-they said that he tricked the guards into giving him an extra fork with his meals. H-he'd been working on a plastic lock pick, and by the time the guards got there, the cell door was open and he was just... gone.'

'Okay, okay,' Robert said half to himself.

'Alright. I want Sectors P, D and Q to head to Arctic Prison and investigate. See if you can find any traces of where Colter may have gone. Sector J, ready the weapons and the ammunition supply. I want anyone else to get back to their treehouses _and lock down. _Nobody gets in, nobody goes out. Stay there and lay low until further notice.Sector V -both Sector V's- you're with me!

'Kids Next Door!' Robert yelled, throwing his head back.

'_Battle Stations!'_

People scattered.

Agents were already in the process of dialing their parents' numbers, to tell them something made up about a camping trip or a sleepover or some other reason why they're not going to be at home that night.

Without a word, Numbuhs 1, 2, 3, 5 and 362, lead by Numbuh 263 and 8,860, moved towards the back exit.

They met up with the Numbuh 121 and the rest of the other Sector V there.

'What's the plan, Robert?' Numbuh 505 asked.

Everyone's faces were solemn, ready to listen and ready to move.

Robert looked for a second like he didn't know what to do. He took a deep breath;

'I want you guys-' he pointed to the younger kids- 'to go back to the treehouse and stock up on weapons. Then, alert Numbuhs 4 and 404 of the situation. Tell them I want them to get back here as soon as they can.'

Numbuh 121 and the rest of the team saluted, before running of in the direction of the landing bay.

'Now,' Numbuh 263 continued, turning to the teenagers.

'Do you guys think you could start trying to get the antidote out a bit early?'

'What, you mean tonight?' Numbuh 2 replied. He didn't think that was enough time to get ready.

Robert sensed this as well.

'I know it's short notice, but we're still down a _lot _on numbers, and I think the best thing to do if Colter has escaped would be to get as many kids back as we can.'

Nmbuh 1 nodded diligently.

'Right,' he said. 'Dr. Colter is bound to have some way of tracking which kids he has and hasn't gotten to. It'll probably take him a while to figure out what's going on, and until then, he's not even going to go after any kids he thinks he's turned.'

'Exactly. So, do you think you can do it?'

The four of them (plus Rachel) looked around at each other for a moment.

'Yep. I think we can.'

~(*)~

It was early afternoon, and The Beatles were out at the beach, one last time before they had to leave the next day.

It was perfect; sun was out, water was cool, waves were ideal.

But that was all shoved aside when Joey got the call from the rest of his Sector.

He had just come in from the water for a drink and a snack, when from his little beach bag, the KND communicator started vibrating. He grabbed it, and made sure to jog far enough away to be out of earshot before he answered.

And as his four friends filled him in on everything that happened, so sudden, so fast, his face grew more and more grim.

'Ya want us there _when? _Ah don't think-'

There was insistant talk; he and Wally _had _to be there _that night._

_'_Our flight leaves tomorrow. Can't we just wa-'

They told him no. He couldn't.

'Really? Okay then, Ah'll figure something out.'

Over and out.

'Yeah, seeya. Over and out.'

He went and got Wally, and Gabbie as well, who he hadn't seen a lot that afternoon, come to think of it.

He told them the news.

'Whot? Crud, not _again!'_

Wally kicked angrily at the sand under his feet, wondering to himself how he ever thought that an Arctic prison cell would hold Dr. Colter; _of course _he would get out.

Gabbie's reaction, however, was much different.

'Yeah,' she said. 'Ah know. There was a meeting at Moonbase. Weren't you two there?'

Wally and Joey exchanged glances.

'...We were meant to be there?' They said slowly.

Gabbie rolled her eyes.

'Look, Ah think Ah can arrange a ride for you guys back up there. Ah'll take ya with my Sector before we have to lock down, okay? But you have to explain ta your parents why your _plane_ _tickets have been shifted to an earlier flight, _okay?'

'Alright.'

'Okay then, the SCAMPER will be in the carpark in _two hours. _Don't be late!'

And with that, she went back to helping Danny with his sandcastle.

'_Whot do we tell mum and dad?' _Joey whispered to his brother.

'_Ah dunno, let's just wing it, okay?'_

_'Isn't that dangerous?'_

_'Extremely.'_

They reached their parents and braced themselves for a very big lie.

'Hey, Mu-um?'

~(*)~

Sector V were aboard their SCAMPER, along with Robert, Rachel and Jamie. They were heading back to the treehouse, going at full throttle; if they were going to get as many turned operatives at least injected with the cure as possible, they were going to have to move fast.

'Numbuh 2, how long until we're there?' Numbuh 1 asked from his seat.

Hoagie checked a couple of dials.

'Ten and a half minutes, tops,' he answered.

'Good.'

The trip was just a little awkward. The six of them were sitting there, all worried, all feeling stupid for not predicting this, and not feeling like they wanted to make conversation.

So they sat in silence, like people on a train, picking a spot of wall or out the window where they wouldn't be accidentally making eye contact.

But by the time they reached the treehouse, they had switched to full mission mode, and they bailed out of the SCAMPER and into the Treehouse quickly, routinely.

Numbuh 2 immediately headed for where he had stored the serum he had created so far.

'Alright, so we've got enough here for about sixty, maybe seventy-five operatives,' he said as he came back through the door, heaving a large crate through and setting it on the table.

'Really?' Robert said. 'That much?'

'Well, it doesn't take much of the stuff to reverse the effects. What happens is the serum sets off the part of the brain that's dormant; the KND part. Then, the subject should be able to do the rest themselves,' Hoagie explained, all the while unloading tube after tube of the purply liquid.

'So this is like when we were recommissioned?' Abby related. 'You guys started talking, and then whatever part of the Kids Next Door was still in our brains did the rest?'

'Exactly.'

Hoagie worked quickly, and in less than two minutes he started to hand out a rack of six tubes to everyone there.

'Load these into your SPICERs. Now that we know that the serum is safe, we don't have to inject it into every individual. Whenever you see a turned operative, just fire it at them.'

The five others all retreived SPICERs from the array of weapons on the wall. Opening up the compartment where the spicy red pepper that powered the beam was usually kept, they plugged in the tubes of liquid, and closed the lid.

Meanwhile, Hoagie was still talking.

'But the one thing is, you have to be at a pretty close range for the shot to work. If you shoot at someone from over ten feet away, the ray won't work, and that'll be one shot wasted.'

The others nodded in understanding.

This wasn't going to be as easy as they thought.

'So what happens if we run into Colter?' Kuki asked, fiddling with her raygun.

Numbuh 1 answered;

'I guess we fight. Call for backup and then fight.'

'So we'd better take some other weapons too?' Numbuh 362 asked.

'Yes. Either a MUSKET or a SPLANKER; something reasonably small.'

'How long does it take for the serum to work?' Jamie asked. She had been knocked out when she had been cured, and she had no idea how or when exactly she'd returned. All she knew was that when she was made unconscious, she was turned, and when she woke, she was back.

'Well, since we're firing this in a single blast, I think it shouldn't take too long. But what I _don't _recommend you do is shoot the kids and run. At least stay to make sure they're okay and that they know what's going on. Tell them to go straight back to their treehouses, alright?'

'Okay.'

'Okay, good. Are we ready to go?' Numbuh 1 asked, straightening up and readying himself for the mission.

'Yep!'

'Yeah.'

'Uh-hu.'

'Let's go!'

It was then that the other Sector V arrived, telling them that Wally and Joey were going to try and get back as soon as they could. Robert told them what they were going to try to do.

'Would you guys maybe be able to take care of things back here? I've ordered all the kids to be locked down by eight-thirty. Until then, could you just handle anything that comes up? I know you're all capable,' he said, looking very serious and very sincere.

'Of course,' Numbuh 121 answered with a firm nod.

'Thank you. Really. Okay, we have to get going now. Stay low, don't let Colter know you're here, and lock down with everyone else! We'll check in with you soon. Bye guys! Gook luck.'

And so, Sector V senior (plus Robert, plus Rachel) started up the SCAMPER again, and were out into the sky, on a quest to bring back the operatives who had already been effected by Colter, and Sector V junior was left with the task of protecting the ones who had not.

~(*)~

'So, let me get this straight,' Wally and Joey's father said.

'You have ta fly out tonight because tha airport accidentally separated our seats, and ya've been moved ta this afternoon.'

That was the lie. The two boys were pinning everything on this lie.

'Yes. And we've got ta go _now.'_

'But, we booked tha tickets months ago,' their mother protested.

'Ya were on our flight then!'

'Uhhm...' Wally dragged, his mind going at a mile a minute.

Which was faster than Wally's mind had ever gone.

But Joey was quicker. He interjected;

'All of tha tickets are done online now. It's big, complicated computa stuff. There's probably a glitch in the mainframe, a virus. Tha firewall must be down. The file type didn't match the airport's system bit rate and some bug corrupted all the ticket database.'

Confuse the adults with computer language. That was the plan. Of course, Joey was just making it up on the spot, he had no _idea _what he was saying, but his parents didn't know that, did they?

'A... a bug? Like a cockroach?'

'Is tha airport infested with cockroaches?'

'No, no mum! That just means that there was a problem with tha computer.'

'Oh. Okay.'

Their dad wasn't finished with this conversation though.

'Well, if your seats have really been shifted, Ah think Ah better talk ta tha airport, because you shouldn't have ta cut your holiday short just because of a computer cockroach.'

'Computer _bug, _dad.'

'Yeah. Okay.'

'But dad!' Wally started, as his father began to pull out his mobile phone.

'We-uh, we already called them! They said there wasn't anythin' they could do!'

'Well, Ah think Ah'll just try again. Now where is tha panphlet? I need ta see tha number...'

Wally pulled Joey aside.

'We need ta redirect that call!' He said in a hissed whisper.

'Agreed,' Joey said, pulling out his communication device.

He called Jake back home.

Precious seconds ticked by as it rang.

'Hello? Joey?'

'Jake! I need you to hack a call for me.'

'What?'

'Look, I have no time to explain. Just- have you got my dad's cell number with you?'

There was a ruffling of papers, probably Jake going through the various sheets on the kitchen bench, trying to find the contact list Joey's parents had given him in case of an emergency.

'Yep! I got it, now what?'

'Get into tha Sydney Airport mainframe. Intercept my dad's call. Now!' Joey urged, jumping up and down in his agitation, as in the corner of his eye he saw his dad dialing the number.

'Okay, I'm on it.'

The two of them -Wally and Joey- stood tensely, waiting to see if Numbuh 202 would be quick enough.

'Okay, I got it. But hang on- if _I'm _intercepting it, doesn't that mean that _I _have to-'

'At that moment, Wally's father began to talk through the small device Jake had used to get into the airport's system.

'Hello?' The boys heard their father from two places at once; one from about fifteen feet away, where he was sitting on a towel, and another from where Jake was.

'Uh, he-hello,' Jake answered nervously, putting on a fake adult voice that had Joey and Wally fighting to stop themselves from laughing, lest they give themselves away.

Had this been a video phone, Wally and Joey would have seen Jake face palming in annoyance.

'H-how may I help you?' He stuttered, trying desperately to think of what an actual receptionist would say.

'Well, Ah've heard that my two sons' tickets from Sydney to tha US have been shifted from tomorrow to today. Is this true?'

'Uhm, yes, _sir, _this is true. We have been having...'

Joey dictated to him through the phone;

'_Technical difficulties!' _he whispered.

'Technical difficulties! We've been having technical difficulties lately. I'm sorry sir.' Jake was having a mini nervous breakdown. He didn't know how to do this!

But the boys' father insisted.

'Is there any way ya can put them back on our flight?' He asked, sounding like he was all too willing to complain.

'I'm afraid not, sir. The only available seats we have are for this afternoon. It's either 4 o'clock today, or...'

'_Say "next Friday"!'_ Joey beckoned.

'Say next Friday. I mean- I mean next Friday!' Jake floundered.

But it seemed to be working.

'Well... alright then, if that's tha only time you can fly them out soon. But Ah am not happy with your customer service.' Their father made that clear.

'I'm- uhm, sorry sir. We're doing all we can.'

'Goodbye then.' The real adult said, hanging up somewhat annoyedly, leaving the _fake _adult to let out a sigh of relief.

Wally and Joey hi-fived.

'Hey Joey?' Numbuh 202 asked after a while.

'Yeah?'

'Don't _ever _make me do that again.'

~(*)~

'Land here Numbuh 2. This should be far enough,' Numbuh 1 instructed, as the team hovered over a park around the suburbs.

'You got it,' Hoagie said bringing the SCAMPER down to the ground gently.

They filed out, each readying themselves, pulling weapons out from pockets.

'So, we'll meet back here in an hour?' Robert proposed.

'Yep.' Numbuh 362 replied.

'Well, then, all there's left to is go,' Abby said.

'Seeya later guys!' Kuki bounced off, and Hoagie, Jamie, Robert and Abby each took a different direction towards the city streets.

That left only Nigel and Rachel, still standing there.

There was silence for a couple seconds. Then, a small, mischievious smile appeared on Rachel's face.

'Betcha I can get to more kids than you,' she taunted.

Nigel returned the game just as quickly.

'Pfft. No way. You're just an out-of-practice desk officer!'

'Ready?' Rachel said, taking a running stance.

'I was born ready!'

'Okay then, _go!'_

Rachel took off, leaving Nigel behind.

'Wait! I wasn't ready!

_Wait for me!'_

~(*)~

Wally and Joey were in the carpark, with Gabbie, waiting for the SCAMPER to arrive.

'So, you're parents think you're...?' Gabbie asked, leaning back on a lamp pole in the shade.

'Takin' the bus back to tha house to get our stuff, then goin' ta the airport.'

'They would let you do that?'

'Took a lot of convincing, Ah'm not gonna lie.'

There was a whoosh of air as a large ship cast a shadow over the pavement.

'Guess our ride's here,' Joey said, getting up from his cross-legged position.

'Alright. So, back to the US it is,' Wally said, clapping his hands together.

'And back to work too, by the sounds of it.'

~(*)~

**A/N: Another chapter done! How did you like it? **

**R&R please!**

**AND A CHALLENGE to everyone out there:**

**Tell me; if you could crossover ANY show with KND, what would it be? And;**

**Ask me anything. Go on, anything. Seriously, about the story, about me, about anything!**

**Okay, that's all, seeya!**

** -Numbuh 25, over and out**


	39. Ch 38, Battlefield

**A/N: Okay, I'm a week late, but hopefully this chapter will make it worth it. I thought I would take that extra bit of time because I wanted this installment to be extra special for you.**

**And at the end of this Chapter... let's just say you will be happy. (Hopefully)**

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Chapter 38- Battlefield

~(*)~

'Come on, come on, just a little further...' Hoagie murmered, peeking out from behind the bushes again. He was on track of a turned operative he had just spotted.

Picking them out was easy; they looked like what they were. They just looked like exactly what a ten year-old teenager would appear as; a miniature version of the makeup-wearing, OMG-texting, hair-doing sixteen year olds you'd find anywhere.

Right now, Hoagie was on the trail of his third kid this afternoon. The other two had gone smoothly, although it had taken a while to get the kids up to date on what was going on, and what they had to do.

'So, this other girl is all like; '_Oh, no you didn't!' _and I'm like '_Oh, yes I did!' _and she goes; '_You wanna piece of me?' _and I'm all...'

The girl, walking slowly down the sidewalk and talking into a cell phone to who-knows-who, came slowly closer and closer to where Numbuh 2 was lying in wait.

_'Almost there...' _Hoagie whispered, readying his hands on the SPICER full of the serum.

At last, the girl was within ten feet of Hoagie and his bush, and he was able to stick the gun out and fire too quickly for the girl to react.

In an instant, she was stunned. She stood stock still, her phone still hanging from one limp hand, and Hoagie could just make out a voice from someone on the other end, asking what was going on.

He had to move fast, as the effect was already in motion, and now, though outside she remained blank, this girl was probably experiencing a rush of memories not dissimilar to the one that Numbuh 2 and his team got when they were recommissioned.

He jumped out of his hiding spot and took the girl's hand, tugging her until she followed him submissively into the shade of a large tree.

She was conscious- that was certain, but she was in no way alert. Hoagie had her sit down on the grass, where she then just stared, stared into nothing with her legs crossed and her arms drooping limply to the side. It was, Hoagie thought, just a little bit unsettling.

In time, the girl looked up. Slowly, groggily, she creased her brow in confusion at the strange -yet subtly familiar- boy looking back at her.

'Who... are you?' she eventually questioned.

'I'll explain later. Right now I need you to tell me what you remember. Do you know what your Numbuh is?'

The girl looked baffled for a second. She brushed a hand past her forehead, mumbling something under her breath. Something like '..._Numbuh...I- I was... ugh...'_

Then, she straightened out, seeming to begin to come to her senses.

'I'm- I'm Numbuh 676. I'm Amanda,' she said, unsurely, as if she didn't quite know herself.

'Okay. Do you remember anything else? Your Sector? Treehouse? Anything?'

She thought the question over for a little bit, before nodding cautiously.

'I remember what happened. There was a man... a man with something that... I thought I'd gotten away...'

She then suddenly tossed he head back, shaking it side to side, almost overwhelmed by this sudden change of states.

'I turned, right?'

Hoagie was surprised at this. None of the other kids he'd gotten to had realised what had happened without being told.

'Yes,' he said calmly, sitting down, cross-legged, facing the girl.

'How did you...?'

'I've been working on this thing for _weeks,' _Hoagie eplained, holding up an extra canister of the serum he had in his pocket.

There was silence. Amanda's face kept flashing hints of expressions; realisation, confusion, regret, frustration, all appearing and fading from her face for half a second at a time.

Hoagie waited until Numbuh 676 looked more ready to talk.

He explained everything to her, and then said;

'Listen, Amanda. The man who turned you is on the loose again. He could be anywhere by now. I really need you to get back to your treehouse, as quickly and inconspicuously as possible. Can you do that?'

The girl nodded. She didn't seem to talk much.

'Good. Thank you,' Hoagie said, beginning to get up.

'Wait,' he heard Amanda say.

'Yeah?'

'Are you Numbuh 2?'

'Uhm, yes.'

Nobody spoke for a few minutes, and the scene began to get awkward.

'I, uhm... thank you. For saving me,' Numbuh 676 said quietly, finally.

Hoagie smiled.

'No problem. Now get back to your Sector. And make sure you give 'em a surprise.'

One final nod, and the girl was off.

Feeling a warm, optimistic pride well up inside him, Numbuh 2 picked up his things and set off again, to find another Operative to bring back.

~(*)~

It was amazing, Amanda thought, that things could change so quickly, and yet once it was over, it seems like a whole eternity.

She walked down the street to her treehouse. _Her _treehouse. She could say that again now. Because she was back.

She felt vulerable, but she knew she needent be; the enemy had to idea that she was back, and even if they saw her, they would only smile and think to themselves that they had triumphed, though they were slowly, unwittingly letting their victory slip through their fingers like sand through an hourglass.

She reached the trunk of the treehouse, looking up at all its glory. She began up the stairs, letting old routine take over, stepping it out like she had a million times before.

She got to the main door, but before she could knock on the metal door that was back in her memory, she noticed the red light.

The treehouse was on lockdown.

She'd have to use the emergency entry.

Ever since that incident with the spank-happy vampires in Lockdown mode (which was, coincidentally, Sector V's incident), a mandatory lockdown emergency entry/exit was ordered to be installed. Amanda found it easy to get in; all she had to do was find the right door, and press her thumb to the middle of the knob, and once the fingerprint scan accepted her, she was allowed into the treehouse with no further hassle.

Treehouses weren't meant to be _fully _locked down for about fifteen minutes.

Amanda walked into the living room casually, smiling to herself.

'Hey guys,' she said to two of her teammates.

They turned around, and instead of the baffled and shocked expressions Numbuh 676 had been expecting, she got wide smiles and hugs.

Amanda had been the only one of her team left when she had turned.

The two of her Sector who were already at the treehouse were kids who had been brought back only hours ago.

The other two of them were nowhere to be seen.

But, as the first two explained, they would be there.

Everyone would be there.

In time.

~(*)~

'Come in, Mission Control. This is Agent 16C checking in. I have spotted an enemy ship.' Reported a figure clad in black.

'Roger that 16C. Are you going to go in?' replied a crackly voice from a radio.

'Well, of course I am! I will report back soon and update. Over.'

'Copy that. Over and out.'

The black figure circled back around to get a full aim of the ship she was targeting. Falling in behind it sneakily, she set all of her weapons and sheilds on. It was only a matter of time before they noticed her, and then the battle would begin.

Stupid kids.

~(*)~

'Wally? When are we gonna be there?' Joey droned for the eighty-hundredth time.

'Ah don't know, Joey. Ask the pilot!' Wally answered for the eighty-hundredth time.

'Hey, Numbuh 350, wh-'

'We'll get there when we get there,' the pilot, Numbuh 350, who was in Gabbie's Sector, replied for the eighty-hundredth time.

'Hang on... wait- I think someone's...' Numbuh 350 said for the _first _time that day.

'Someone's what? Someone's what?' Joey demanded, scrambling to move to the front of the ship so he could see out the windsheild.

Sure enough, an enemy ship had now dropped into view from the corner of the rearview mirrors.

'It's a teenager!' Numbuh 350 exclaimed, and immediately began pushing buttons and pulling knobs at an alarming rate.

Wally turned around to see out the back window.

'That's not just a teenager,' he said, narrowing his eyes as he figure became clear.

'That's a twenty-two year-old with a bad attitude problem.'

~(*)~

It had been exactly an hour since Sector V and Robert had set out to bring back as many turned operatives as they could, and they were all back at the park where the SCAMPER had been parked.

'Everything go okay with you guys?' Rachel asked, yawning. She'd never admit this to Nigel, but she was just a _little_ _bit _out of practice. And this was tiring work.

'Yep,' Abby said, leaning back against the hull of the ship. 'Although sometimes it took a while to get close enough to the kids without freaking 'em out.'

That was when Robert's communicator started buzzing wildly.

He pushed a couple of buttons, and the audio feed began to play through the speakers.

'Numbuh 263! Numbuh 263, this is Numbuh 350 of Sector AU. We are under attack from a teen ninja ship!'

Wally cut in;

'Guys, it's Cree. She's tailing us.'

Those on the other side of the reciever gasped. Except for Abby. She just shook her head in anger.

'Are you going to attack?' Numbuh 1 asked.

Just then, the sound of a lazer beam firing came through the speaker.

'Too late!' Joey yelled. 'She already has!'

'Are you okay?' Numbuh 3 cried, leaning in closer to the transmitter.

'She only clipped the side of the hull with that shot. Numbuh 350 is taking evasive action now. We're heading up higher.'

An engine revved, and more shots were heard, from Cree and from the ship the boys were on.

'How are you guys holding up? Do you need backup?' Rachel asked.

At first, there was no answer.

'Hello? Guys? Come in! Do you read me?'

Nothing again, only the sound of weapons and the constant sound of the engine.

Then, finally, someone answered.

'Looks like we're in more trouble than we expected!' Numbuh 404 reported. 'Cree had company!'

Numbuh 2 bit his lip.

'Is there anyone we can send in to help?' he asked.

Robert shook his head slowly.

'Everyone else is on lockown. I've given strict orders to everyone exept Numbuh 121 and her team that no-one is to leave at all.'

'So they're just on their own?' Kuki exclaimed.

'Yes. If we tried to make it there, it would take to long. The fight would be over long before we could get near them.'

Worried glances were exchanged.

'Are you guys okay?' Abby asked again.

'Well, we've been better!' Wally said sarcastically.

'But Numbuh 350 here is putting up a good fight. Joey and I are trying to man the weapons system and fight back. We're- oh. Oh no. There are more of them!'

It was five against one now.

Five enemy ships, and only one KND vessel trying to avoid defeat.

Nobody spoke for a long time.

Nobody was sure what was going to come of the three boys in that ship.

Every now and then, there would be one shot that came through louder than the rest; a direct hit.

Everyone was worried. They had sat down in a circle on the grass, and set the communicator in the middle of them, as if it was some kind of ritual.

Kuki sat there, surrounded by all but one of her friends; the one she wished would be there most. She hadn't seen him since that day before Christmas, and now she wasn't sure if she was ever... she couldn't even finish that thought. It was too horrible.

She just wanted Wally back safe and sound. That was all she wanted and all she needed at that moment.

Then, Numbuh 350 came back on the radio with an update.

'Guys, I think we might e able to make it. We've taken down three of their ships, and now we just have Cree and one of her friends to go.

Hope flickered in the eyes of the people around the circle.

Gradually, the shots became less frequent, and the voices on the other line less desperate.

'Guys, it's only Cree now. The rest are gone. I think we're gonna make it!'

Cheers all round.

But then-

'Hello, K-N-Dorks,' came a chillingly familiar voice. Cree had hijacked the ship's communication system, and as Sector V, Robert and Rachel listened to her from the transmitter, a video feed of the cockpit of her fighter appeared on the ship that Wally, Joey and Numbuh 350 were on.

'I bet you think you're so- wait a minute. What are _you _doing here! You're a teenager!'

Apparently Cree had noticed Wally.

It was like one of the classic scenes that Numbuh 4 remembered from the old days, with six years added on.

'Got that right, ya cruddy adult! And we just whooped you and your stupid friends' butts!'

Cree's eyes narrowed menacingly, her mouth creasing into a malevolent smile.

'You may have taken out the other vessels. But I just called for backup, from a group of kids I'm _sure _you're well aquainted with.

_'Hello, Wallabee.'_

Monotonous, synchronised, and overall _creepy, _came the voices of five people, five _teenagers, _that made Wally's jaw drop.

And then, from the blanket of clouds below the ships that blocked their view of the ground, came rising a ship of huge proportions; easily over 8 times as large as either ship that was already there.

And on the other side of the line, Sector V's side, they had heard the chilling greeting as well.

Kuki gasped, Nigel's eyes narrowed as far as they could without being closed, Rachel's breath caught and Abby just stared.

'Aw, not _these _guys again!' Hoagie groaned, tossing his head back in frustration.

Meanwhile, the delightfuls' ship had fully risen up behind that of the boys, revealing a cockpit stocked with five 'perfect' teenagers.

_'You,' _Wally spat.

'Yes, Wallabee. It _is _us. It's been a long time, hasn't it?'

'What do you want?' Joey demanded.

'Oh?' the delightful teens said, looking at Joey through the screen. They laughed as they saw the two brothers standing side by side. 'How nice. The tradition continues! But I would expect you by now to know what we are here for.'

And, as per usual, in an instant, a million different weapons sprang from the Delightful ship at once, increasing its size twofold, and its leathalness tenfold.

'We are here to _destroy you.'_

_'Pfft,' _Wally scoffed. 'We've beaten you creeps more times than Ah can count! What makes ya think this time'll be any different?'

The Delightfuls only smiled evilly.

'Oh, we're pretty sure it's going to be different this time.'

'Okay, we're getting out of here now,' Numbuh 350 said, booting up the ship's turbo drive.

'We're getting' outta here!' He yelled, punching the gas.

The ship careened forward.

But so did the Delightfuls'- just as fast.

'You're not going to get away that easily, Kids Next _Dim; _we're ready for your every move!' the synchronised voices taunted.

And it was true; somehow, every time the KND vessel made a move, a dodge, a weave, the five teens' ship would instantly move to block the path.

It looked like they weren't getting out any time soon.

It was a stand-off. Nowhere to go, no place to escape to.

And the ones on the other side of the radio sat tensely, straining their ears to hear anything that might happen.

Of course, something did happen.

Numbuh 350 made a break for it. In a very unconventional manner.

He slammed down the reverse lever as hard as it would go, and the ship was thrown backwards, sending Wally and Joey, who were not seated, hurtling to the ground and skidding to the back wall.

'Sorry guys, but desperate times call for desperate measures, right?' Numbuh 350 said frantically, using all his focus to try and steer the ship in the opposite direction.

Immediately, the Delightfuls were on their tail.

'You can run, KN-Dimwits, but you can't hide!'

The ship was still barrelling backwards, at an alarming rate.

Numbuh 350 was tugging at the control stick, trying to turn them around, but the momentum was too great. They would have to slow down before they tried to change direction.

And they didn't want to slow down.

'Guys? Guys, what's going on?!' Kuki cried, listening to the whir of the engines, which was getting louder as the two ships gained speed.

'We're trying to lose 'em, but it doesn't look like that's gonna happen. Maybe we can outrun them, Ah don't know. We'll just have ta try.' Joey stated, having pulled himself up alongside Wally and once again manning the weapons system, trying to get a shot at the huge, weapon-stocked ship.

This went on for ten minutes. Stress built, tension took hold, none of the kids who were listening even gave a thought as to what they looked like to the people passing by.

And finally, a full thirty-five minutes after the fight had first started, Wally, Joey, and Numbuh 350 announced that they were close to landing.

'We're coming in on the landing, guys! We're right near you!'

But so were the Delightfuls.

Gradually, the sound of weaponry and engine revving from the transmitter became the sound from over the hill. And then down the street. And then right on top of them.

It was a scary, eerily familiar sight to watch the KND ship fly over the hill, dwarfed by the size of the Delightful teens' newest death-machine.

The ship was still motoring backward, towards where the rest of Sector V were.

Two shots were fired at that moment; one from the good team, and one from the evil.

The good shot was a direct hit. Numbuh 404 hit the button to detonate a rocket that shot straight into the centre of the teens' ship.

But the bad shot was also a direct hit.

Before the ship could make a safe landing, it was blown out of the air. The engine smoked, and with a shudder, the entire frame smashed to the ground, right near where the others were.

The seven of them rushed over to the wreck.

Joey was the first to emerge, coughing, a little roughed up, but alright.

Then, Numbuh 350 crawled out. He looked a little worse off than Joey, but with no real damage done; nothing broken, only a couple of scratches.

But Wally didn't come out on his own.

Kuki grew increasingly anxious. After about a minute, she began looking through the remains of the shuttle for any sign of Wally.

It took a while, but finally, she heard a groan from underneath a wooden plank.

She tossed it aside, and found Wally lying in the wreckage.

He was awake, but he looked more hurt than the others.

'N-numbuh 3?' he mumbled.

'Wally? Wally, I'm here!

'Kuki... what happened?'

'The Delightful Children shot you down. Are you okay?'

Wally coughed.

'I- I think so,' he said.

Kuki pulled him further out of the wreckage, and hugged him so tight he found it hard to breath.

Wally wasn't really thinking straight. He was disoriented, he felt tired, but all he wanted to do was say one thing.

Kuki had found him, and he felt grateful for that. She was the one he wanted to see at that moment. During the battle, all he found himself thinking was that he had to get home to see Kuki again.

'N-Num...Kuki?' Wally said again, looking her straight in the eye.

'Yes, Wally? What is it?'

Wally took a deep breath. He was actually doing it. He was going to say it and for the first time, he wasn't even scared.

'Kuki, I- I love you.'

Kuki's heart skipped a beat. She had been waiting years to hear those words. She had been so worried, and to find him okay, and _to hear those words._ Once again, she threw her arms around the boy.

'I love you too, Wally,' She cried.

And then, it just sort of happened. Nobody anticipated it, nobody forced it. It was just like it was the natural course of things.

They kissed, among the debris and torn scraps of the ship.

For years, they had loved each other in secret, and now, that secret was out.

And they were free.

After that, Kuki helped Wally out of the wreck, hooked his arm around her shoulder for support, and together they began to move back towards the Treehouse.

And they were smiling.

~(*)~

**A/N: I took a chance, I hope you like it.**

**I think I'm happy with it.**

**And the Question of the week is;**

_**What has been your favourite Chapter so far?**_

_**But here's the catch; it has to be a chapter **__**other **__**than the recommissioning Chapters!**_

**Seeya all next week!**

**Fun Fact: I was watching Operation: ZERO while I was writing this.**

**Now I'm watching Operation: TRICYCLE.**

**-Numbuh 25, over and out**


	40. Ch 39, Progress

**A/N: Okay, I know what you're all thinking. **_**'This girl is never on time, this girl is all excuses, excuses, excuses, this girl is irresponsible...' **_**aaaand, you're right. I just- I lost the plot a bit. I got halfway through this chapter and just completely did not know where to go in the slightest. But then, one night I pulled it together and it's not much but it's something, okay? Okay.**

Now Loading...

Kids Next Door Mission...

Operation: F.O.R.G.E.T.

Fragments

Of

Recovery

Gradually

Enable

Team

Chapter 39- Progress

Numbuh 3 and Numbuh 4 entered the Treehouse, Kuki still needing to prop the boy up to keep him from falling.

The others, who were already inside, immediately rushed over and began tending to Wally.

Obviously, none of them had witnessed the scene that had played out only moments ago between the two of them.

Joey was in the Treehouse as well, helping Numbuh 350 ready another, smaller shuttle to take back to his own Sector, as the one crashed on the lawn was (obviously) not going to get him anywhere.

Meanwhile, Numbuh 2 was on the computer, trying to work the GPS scanner to see if there was any more enemy troops coming their way.

'Wait, wait, wait,' he heard Numbuh 4 say over the other side of the room.

'Nobody ever told me that Rachel was back!'

Ha, I guess they'd forgotten that part.

'Oh, uhm... Hi, Wally! Yeah... I am,' Numbuh 362 laughed awkwardly.

Numbuh 121 and the rest of her Sector walked in, reporting that all Treehouse bases had now been locked down fully and had been notified about possible enemy attacks from Cree and the teenagers as well as Colter.

'Okay, well that just leaves us then,' Robert said in a somewhat satisfied manner. He was carrying around a clipboard loaded with papers and notes and checklists, gnawing absent-mindedly on the end of a pencil.

'Now, I'm debating as to whether or not _we_ should lock down as well or not. On one hand, it would be a lot safer to go into lockdown as well, but-'

'What the crud are you sayin?' Wally interjected.

'There's no _way _we can lock down now! This is our chance ta _fight back!' _He said, pounding his fist into his palm.

'Numbuh 4's right,' Nigel agreed. 'While everyone else is out of action, they're going to need someone to keep all of these guys under control.'

Numbuh 202 furrowed his brow, worried.

'You _do _realise that we'd be outnumbered about a _kajillion _to one?' He pointed out.

'So what? It's not like we haven't taken that kind of challenge on before!' Wally said, standing up.

'Yeah!' Kuki chimed. 'We can do it!'

'Well, Numbuh 5 thinks we can do it.'

'And so do I!' Numbuh 2 cheered.

'Can we count you in as well?' Rachel asked Robert and the younger kids.

'You're all crazy,' Numbuh 505 stated bluntly.

'But, what the heck, I'm in.'

So, eventually everyone agreed on ditching the lockdown and fighting back instead.

And in about half an hour, they had divided into three groups;

Numbuhs 1, 2, 4 and 5 were in one.

Numbuhs 3, 362, 121 and 263 were in another.

And Numbuhs 202, 303, 404 and 505 were on the third.

Group 1 was to take to the skies, and ward off any arial attacks, while Group 2 was the Networking group; basically, they communicated, they spied, they managed the rest of the Sectors in the other Treehouses.

Meanwhile, Group 3 was assigned with attempting to locate the Delightfuls -wherever they may have gone- and trying to get as much info out of them as they could.

It wasn't going to be easy, but hey, they were the KND, right?

~(*)~

'Team 3, come in Team 3. This is Team 1. We have achieved lift off, and are now circling the air above The Delightful Mansion. What's your position? Over.' Numbuh 2 reported, while in the background Numbuh 3 and Numbuh 5's fingers flew over the buttons and keyboards of the ship's targeting system, trying to pinpoint the location of the five miserable Delightful Teens.

It was Numbuh 303 who replied, in a comically loud whisper.

'This is Team 3. We hear you loud and clear! We're in the Mansion, but there seems to be no sign of the Children, or even Father for that matter. Over.'

'That's strange. Father should be around there. Are you sure you can't see him, Numbuh 303? Nothing? Over.'

'Nope, nothing at all. We've looked- wait! Something's coming!'

There was a pause, and a shuffling noise as the kids inside the Mansion hurried to make themselves unseen.

A sillhouette -no wait, _two _of them- made their ways down the corridor.

'Father, I promise you that these brats have no chance against me and my troops,' one of the figures was saying.

Then, the chilling voice of none other than Father himself echoed throughout the hall.

'How do I know you won't _blow it _like you did _last time?' _he said.

'But just look at them!' the first voice protested. 'They're so scared of me that they've all run off and hid in their little Treehouses! They don't stand a chance against me!'

It was pretty obvious that the first voice was Dr. Colter.

'Alright then. I'll give you _one_ chance!' Father glowered.

'BUT _if you screw this up again...!' _The black shape yelled, bursting into flame suddenly, sending Dr. Colter's shadow quivering along the wall.

'Of course, Father. I won't let you down.'

And with that, Colter left for the door, while Father continued to pace up and down the hallway.

All the while, The four Operatives who had been listening in were crammed longways, sideways and anyways on top of each other in a broom closet not too far away.

'_Ouch! Jake, ya standing on my fingers!' Joey_ complained.

_'Get your foot outta my face, Numbuh 404!' _Demanded Numbuh 202.

_'You're smooshing my face against the wall,'_ came a rather muffled voice from Numbuh 303.

_'Shuddup!' _Numbuh 505 hissed at them all.

'_I'm trying to listen.'_

Silence, from inside and outside the cupboard.

'_Ah don't hear anything,' _Joey said after a while.

'Exactly. I think they're gone,' Olivia said, beckoning for them to edge closer to the door.

'Okay, now everyone be _absolutely silent.' _

...

'_How silent?' _Jake asked after a cautious few seconds of quiet.

'_Whaddaya mean, how silent? Silent is silent!' _Numbuh 505 shot back.

'_Doya mean, like, movie theatre silent or math test silent?'_

_'Is there a difference?'_

This time, Numbuh 303 piped up, eager to share her opinion, even given their current situation in a broom closet in their enemy's mansion.

'_Well, I think that movie theatre silent is kind of a more willing silence. Like you're so interested in what's going on that you can't help but be quiet._

_'But math test silent is more like you're being silent because you're scared of what will happen if you aren't.'_

_'Are we seriously having this conversation? Everyone just shut up!' _Numbuh 505 whisper-shouted at the top of her quietest voice.

Meanwhile, Numbuh 303 was still babbling away in the background.

_'You see, it's all about your varying degrees of silent...'_

Numbuh 505 rolled her eyes and snapped her fingers to get the attention of the two boys next to her.

Numbuh 303 was a lost cause at this point.

'_Okay, you two. I want you to split up and take the left and right corridors.'_

Meanwhile, in 303-land...

_'So you've got the co-incidental silent moments, like in class when everyone just accidentally happens to be not talking, and then it gets awkward and everybody laughs...'_

_'Try to find where Colter's gone and follow him. I'm going to see what Father's gotten up to.' _The second-in-command of the Sector directed. Jake and Joey nodded briskly

_..._

_'And then, past movie cinema silent, just-saw-something-creepy silent, math test silent and meditation-isation silent, there's night-time silent, where everybody is sleeping so there's no noises...'_

'_So are we all ready?'_

_..._

_'And then, if you want to go reeeeeally far into it, you can get to nothingness silence, which is like when we go on missions in space and when nobody's talking, you can't hear anything and it's like someone unplugged your ears...'_

And it was at that point that Numbuh 505 finally lost it.

'Fern! Would you shut up? With all the noise you're making, it's a wonder we haven't been caught already! I mean-'

And then the door opened.

The four operatives stood there, sheilding their eyes from the bring light of...

'Well, lookie here. A rag-tag group of little kiddies. Lost, I suppose?'

'Father!' Jake cried, scrambling until he was pressed flat against the back wall of the cupboard.

'That's right. But there's nowhere to run to now, ya brats!'

All four of them squeezed their eyes shut and clenched their teeth, waiting for whatever was going to happen next.

~(*)~

Group 1 was still in the air, now leaving the Mansion.

The messages from the four who were inside had stopped, and the team who was airborne just assumed that they were listening for whoever they had heard coming down the hallway.

'Where are we going now, Numbuh 1?' Hoagie asked, keeping his eyes ahead where he was steering the ship.

Numbuh 1 didn't respond for a while. It seemed that he was not thinking, but simply did not know.

After a while, it became apparent that Nigel wasn't going to say anything, so Abby stepped in for him.

'Well, I guess there are going to be at least some villains wandering around, probably scouts sent by Father or Colter to see if anyone's outside their treehouses.'

'Right,' Wally agreed. 'So maybe we should lay low, land back at the Treehouse so they think we're still there, and then pick off any spies one at a time?'

'Wally, that's ridiculo- wait a minute, that's actually not a bad idea!' Nigel said in disbelief.

'Huh? Why did you start to say it was ridiculous?'

...Akward silence.

'Uhm, well... you know... your ideas aren't always... _great, _Wally,' Hoagie explained nervously.

'Whot's that supposed ta mean?!' Wally yelled indignantly.

'It means that most of your ideas are stupid, Einstein!' Abby called back with a laugh.

'Now shut up before you give us away and ruin one of your only good ideas!'

Nigel rolled his eyes, smiled slightly, then cut off the bantering.

'Alright, guys, cut it out. Numbuh 2, take us back to the Treehouse! Numbuh 4 and Numbuh 5, pack your weapons and be ready to move.'

Hoagie put on the accelerator, Wally and Abby stopped their argument and saluted, leaving their seats and heading for their supply of weapons on the back wall of the hull.

~(*)~

Meanwhile, the second group was hiding out; in an old abandoned shed near the skate park.

'We have another transmission coming through,' Numbuh 121 said, who was wearing a headset and twisting the knob on a radio set

Kuki, Rachel and Robert jolted to attention, sitting upright where they had been boredly slouched on the benches in the shed; Networking sounded fun, but it involved a lot of laying around, waiting for something to happen.

'What is it? Kuki asked, rubbing her eyes. She may have dozed off in her boredom.

Numbuh 121 held up a finger in a 'hold on a minute' signal, listened, adjusted the knob, rolled her eyes and spoke;

'It's just another Sector complaining about how they're not allowed to leave to restock on soda,' she explained, covering the microphone with her hand so the operative on the other line couldn't hear her. The three others slouched once again. All they had heard all afternoon was Sector after Sector asking why they couldn't just leave for five minutes to 'get more candy' or 'pick up their Rainbow Monkey'.

'Look, Numbuh 694, the conditions are the same for everyone. You can't leave until the order is given. I don't care if you're out of soda, drink some tap water or something! End Transmission.'

And with that, the radio was put away again.

Back to nothingness.

But underneath the boredom, Kuki was bubbling, bursting to tell someone, _anyone _about her and Wally. She had to try and contain herself, which, if you know Kuki at all, is not an easy thing for her to do.

She was sitting there, jittering around again, when Rachel finally decided to find out what it was all about.

'Okay, Numbuh 3. What's with the whole bouncy, distracted thing. I mean, I know that's just you and all, but come on, there's something else, isn't there?'

Kuki blushed, unsure if she should say anything, but at the same time, dying to tell the whole story.

Finally, it was too much to take.

_'Wally and I kissed!' _She blurted out, before covering her mouth again.

Rachel almost screamed. In fact, she started to, before she remembered that they were _in hiding, _and any screaming would have given them away.

'You _what?! _Woah... wow. I did _not _see that coming. I- _how?'_

Robert looked on with a puzzled kind of interest, not completely sure what the situation was here, while Numbuh 121 smirked and settled down to listen intently.

'When the SCAMPER that Wally and Joey were on crashed, and I was looking for him in the wreckage, I, uhm, he said... _some stuff_, and then it just kind of... happened.'

Rachel squealed, which was quieter than screaming, but twice as girly.

'That's great! I didn't know Wally had it in him to confess! Are you two together now?'

Kuki looked unsure, nervous even.

'Uhm, well, we haven't really talked since then, but... I guess so.'

'Oh, Kuki that is really-'

'Guys, we have a transmission!' Robert interuppted.

~(*)~

'Sh! Shut up guys, I think I have a connection!' Jake hushed, holding up his improvised device in the hopes of a better reception. Their walkie-talkies had been broken when Father had tossed them into the dungeon, and Numbuh 202 had had to try to fix something up from all the spare parts.

'Come in, come in! Do you read me?' Jake tested, crossing his fingers and hoping for the best.

'We read you loud and clear, who is this?' Came a fuzzy reply.

The four of them in the dungeon cheered.

'This is Numbuh 202 of Sector V!'

'Jake? Jake, it's Robert!'

'Robert? Yes! Oh, this is great! Listen, we're trapped. Father found us, you gotta send help!' Numbuh 202 urged, still searching for a sweet spot for reception.

~(*)~

The four operatives on the other side of the line gathered around the radio to hear their friends.

'What are we going to do?' Rachel asked, frowning in concern.

'Can't we just go?' Kuki said, sitting up straight on the bench.

'Well, some of us have to stay here. We can't all go. What if something else happens here? Who would take care of that?'

Rachel suddenly looked up in realisation.

'I know what to do,' she said, standing up.

'But we're going to need some help.'

**Ten Minutes Later**

_Diiing Dong!_

The door opened, to show Rachel and Kuki standing outside, smiling widely.

'Oh, hey guys! What's up?'

'Hey, Fanny. Look, we've got no time to explain, but right now, we need you to come with us. We gotta go get Patton.'

Rachel grabbed Fanny by the wrist and pulled her out the door, but Fanny pulled back.

'Uhm, _actually...' _she said sheepishly, 'Patton's... kinda already here...'

'Hey, what's going on, babe? Oh, Rachel, Kuki! Uhm, what are you guys doing here?' Patton came to the door, and Fanny just blushed and smiled a slightly embaressed smile.

Kuki's jaw dropped.

Rachel was speechless.

And then they started to laugh.

And laugh and laugh and laugh.

But it wasn't long before they came back to their senses and remembered that they were there for a reason.

Rachel stifled her laughter and cleared her throat.

'Okay, you two. We have to go. Now.'

~(*)~

**A/N: Okay, so I think I have been able to get the ball rolling again. I **_**Think. **_

**Hope you liked that, really, I do.**

**See you all next time!**

**-Numbuh 25 out**


End file.
